The Phoenix Suns were arguably the biggest disappointment during the 2023-24 NBA season as they woefully underperformed expectations.
The Suns were considered a title contender after they swung deals for Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, but instead the team was swept out of the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
After an embarrassing finish to last year, Phoenix made a major change when they fired Frank Vogel and brought in Mike Budenholzer to be their new head coach.
Budenholzer spent time away from the game after he parted ways with the Milwaukee Bucks, but now gets a shot to redeem himself with the Suns who are expected to compete for a title.
The Western Conference is even tougher this time around, so Budenholzer will need to find a way to maximize the current roster.
Jusuf Nurkic is slated to be the team’s starting center and Budenholzer outlined what he wants to see from the veteran via Evan Sidery of Forbes.
“Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer said they want Jusuf Nurkic to shoot threes this season. Nurkic worked all offseason on improving his floor-spacing ability. If Budenholzer’s staff transforms Nurkic into a capable stretch big, it opens up the entire floor for their superstars,” Sidery reported.
Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer said they want Jusuf Nurkic to shoot threes this season.
Nurkic worked all offseason on improving his floor-spacing ability.
If Budenholzer’s staff transforms Nurkic into a capable stretch big, it opens up the entire floor for their superstars. pic.twitter.com/UXO10ah4Lu
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) October 5, 2024
Having a floor-spacing big is a massive boost to any current NBA offense, so it makes sense why Budenholzer wants Nurkic to shoot more 3-pointers.
Nurkic has shown flashes of being able to score from distance, but now it looks like he’ll be encouraged to shoot even more of them.
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