Are the Suns shopping Jusuf Nurkic?

Are the Suns shopping Jusuf Nurkic?

After a hot start to the 2024-25 season, the Phoenix Suns are in limbo, currently 15-14 in a stacked Western Conference that has them tied for the No. 8 seed with Minnesota and Golden State.

We are nearly one month away from the Feb. 6 trade deadline, and the Suns could be looking to move off big man Jusuf Nurkic–who they acquired in the Damian Lillard three-team trade in September of 2023–in favor of some of their younger frontcourt pieces.

“The Phoenix Suns have been actively looking to trade starting center Jusuf Nurkic, league sources informed The Arizona Republic,” Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reported Tuesday. “The Suns are seeking a big in return, the sources said. The team has been playing Mason Plumlee, rookie Oso Ighodaro and Nurkic at the five position.

“Washington Wizards big Jonas Valančiūnas and Chicago Bulls big Nikola Vucevic are two players whose names have been reportedly thrown into league trade talks.”

Nurkic, 30, is averaging 9.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists through 22 games, shooting just 45.7 percent from the floor–which would the be worst since 2015-16, his second season in the NBA–and 29.1 percent from 3-point range.

He has one more year beyond 2024-25 left on his deal for $19.4 million, according to Spotrac. Given the Suns’ current cap situation, being over $42 million north of the first apron and $31 million above the second apron, it would be impossible for Phoenix to acquire Vucevic (making $20M) for Nurkic straight up; the Suns would have to trade either one of Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal or Devin Booker to make those cap machinations work, which clearly wouldn’t happen for Vucevic.

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Valanciunas, in the first year of a three-year, $30 million deal he signed with the Washington Wizards last offseason, would be a more realistic solution. But why exactly would Washington want to take back Nurkic unless a third team (plus additional assets) is involved?

Nurkic isn’t a bad player, but he can be a turnstile in space defensively and isn’t very athletic–despite being a good playmaker. Though his value is at the lowest it’s been in his career. So it’s questionable as to why the organization is so desperate to trade him when the return could be unsatisfactory.

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