Wizards shockingly become Jusuf Nurkic trade favorites amid Suns chaos

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The Phoenix Suns have been desperately searching for answers as to how to jolt their team out of the rut they’ve been in over the past few weeks. And one such remedy they’ve come up with is to demote Jusuf Nurkic to the bench, giving the center rotation spots to Mason Plumlee and rookie Oso Ighodaro. It has gotten so bad for Nurkic in a Suns uniform that he was a DNP – Coach’s Decision during their 123-115 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.

This rotation decision from the Suns shows that the team might be ready to move on from Nurkic via trade. And to that end, it looks as though there is a surprise team in the mix for a potential trade for the Bosnian big man. According to the Bovada official sportsbook, the Washington Wizards, of all teams, are the favorite to trade for Nurkic, with their odds being set at +300.

Rounding out the top five of Nurkic trade suitors are the Miami Heat (+400), Houston Rockets (+400), Detroit Pistons (+400), and Brooklyn Nets (+700). The Heat, Rockets, and Pistons could have some use for Nurkic as additional frontcourt depth, while the Nets could be a salary dump site, similar to the Wizards.

The complicating factor in any Nurkic trade for the Suns is the fact that he will be making $19.4 million next season in addition to the $18.1 million cap hit he has for this campaign. It’s not helping matters at all for the Suns that he’s no longer a part of the rotation. Regardless, there could very well be a buy-low opportunity for other teams in this space, provided, of course, that they don’t rely on Nurkic to do too much.

Jusuf Nurkic’s downfall with the Suns

Entering the 2023-24 season, the Suns were in dire need of depth; their shallow roster was exposed in a second-round playoff loss to the Denver Nuggets, after all. They then decided it was for the best to turn Deandre Ayton, one of their prized assets, into depth pieces in Jusuf Nurkic and Grayson Allen.

Nurkic, however, is not the player he once was. There are times when he can fill the stat sheet rather well, but his mobility has been on the decline and there are times when he makes a ton of boneheaded decisions on the court. The Suns have clearly soured on the 30-year-old center; it’s rather telling that they would rather start Mason Plumlee over him.

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