You can t even run! 30-year-old Nurkic, what level is now?

Recently, in the European Cup warm-up match, Bosnia and Herzegovina lost to Montenegro men's basketball 90-102. After the game, Bosnia and Herzegovina head coach Adis Bechirajic did not hide his frustration. He pointed out the player's problems seriously in the interview.

Beclajic said: "Nurkic's figure is out of shape and can hardly run. Castaneda did not participate in training. He only started playing five-on-five two days ago. All these situations need to be integrated into a team that has been working for two years. We must be more prepared for the game."

Let's talk about the European Cup first. This year, the European Cup stars of the men's basketball team are gathered, including Doncic, Jokic, Antetokounmpo, Markanen, Schroeder, Wagner Jr., Porzingis, Shinkin, Vucevic, Avdia and others will participate.

As the number one star of the Bosnian men's basketball team in the NBA, Nurkic will also play, and stars such as Garza and Zanan Mousa will play together. These players may not perform well in the NBA, but they may be superstars in the International League (such as Mousa).

In terms of strength, the Bosnia and Herzegovina men's basketball team has tough offense and defense, and defeated Slovenia in the last European Cup (Musa scored 22 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in that game, and then played against the later champion Germany and scored another 30 points).

But objectively speaking, it is a bit difficult for them to break through this siege. First of all, they are more dead in the group. In the same group, there are strong teams such as Spain and Greece. Secondly, as the head coach of Bosnia and Herzegovina said, the state of several core players has also declined, such as Nurkic.

Nurkic's name should be familiar with everyone. He once "highlighted" between the Nuggets and Jokic (actually they can't compare). After joining the Trail Blazers, he reached the peak of his career. He also helped the Trail Blazers to reach the Western Conference Finals in 2019. That year was also the strongest season of his career, with an average of 15.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game, and a shooting percentage of 50.8%.

In the offseason in 2023, the Trail Blazers completely disintegrated, Lillard was traded to the Bucks (now back), and Nurkic was also sent to the Suns in the trade. In the season before the trade, he averaged 13.3 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, with a shooting percentage of 51.9%.

At that time, he believed that Nurkic should be a helper around Durant, Booker and Bill. However, in the final result, Nurkic did not play such a role, and even dragged his back.

Take the 2023-24 season for example. After joining the Suns, Nurkic served as the starting center. He played a total of 76 games, averaged 10.9 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game, and shot a 51.0% shooting percentage.

The data is not bad, at least it is a double-double, but Nurkic's efficiency is not as good as he imagined. He occasionally shoots three-pointers, averaging 1.2 shots per game, but his shooting percentage is only 24.4% (it is better not to shoot), and his free throw percentage is only 64.0% (65.8% in career free throw percentage), so his real shooting percentage is only 55.9%, which is definitely not good for the center.

Next is last season. Before being traded, Nurkic played only 25 games for the Suns, averaging 23.7 minutes per game, scoring 8.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists, and making 2.3 turnovers.

The data has declined a little compared to last season, and its efficiency has also been reduced. Its shooting percentage is only 45.5%, which is the personal low after the second grade, with its real shooting percentage as low as 55.6%.

Nurkic himself is an inside line with strong offense and weak defense. He lacks the ability to switch defense and is average in the frame protection, which has forced Durant to undertake more tasks on the defensive end.

The offense has become worse and defense is not good. Nurkic's negative effect on the Suns can also be reflected in the data: when Nurkic was on the court last season, the Suns lost 6.5 points in a net loss of 100 rounds, while the Suns only lost 0.2 points in a net loss.

There is also a shocking data that last season when Booker + Durant + Bill + Nurkic + Jones (the starting lineup at the beginning of the Suns season) was on the court at the same time, the team could only score 103.9 points in a hundred rounds, lost 120.9 points, and lost 17.1 points in the net loss to the opponent. Such an expensive, luxurious and expensive starter is the only one in the league.

Only talk about Nurkic. In the middle of the season, Budenholzer dnp Nurkic. On the one hand, it is because Nurkic's condition has declined, and on the other hand, it is because Budenholzer really doesn't know how to use it.

So before the transaction deadline, the Suns sent Nurkic to the Hornets and got Cody Martin and Misic. Note that in order to send Nurkic away, the Suns made a first-round pick in this transaction, which can also indicate his negative value.

After joining the Hornets, Nurkic's performance has not improved much. He averaged 18.1 minutes per game in 26 games, scored 9.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 turnovers, with a shooting percentage of 49.7%, and a real shooting percentage of 55.4%. The problem has not changed much: Nurkic can indeed score, but his efficiency is not high, he can pass the ball, but he also makes many mistakes, and his defense is still a loophole.

This year's offseason, Nurkic was traded again, and the Hornets sent him to the Jazz and got Sexton. It is worth mentioning that the Jazz even made a second round pick in this deal, and they couldn't understand it at all - what did Anji like about the crossbow machine? Have you also got a second round of pick?

Only talk about the Suns period. In fact, as early as the deal between Ayton and Nurkic occurred, many people were not optimistic, because the three Suns themselves have good offensive firepower and need a defensive inside line, but the Suns changed to a center with strong offense and weak defense. In the end, the facts also proved that the Suns' strategy was completely failed..

Of course, the Suns' failure is not a problem for one person or two, but if the Suns had obtained a more defensive inside line at that time, the situation might have been completely different. After all, a good inside line defense is crucial to the team's improvement. The countdown to the defensive league last season can also indicate that there was a big problem with the Suns' defense.

As for Nurkic, it is worth noting that Nurkic is only 30 years old now, and his annual salary next season is 19.37 million. If he is still at the level of last season, he will most likely be able to get a basic salary by becoming a free agent in the offseason next year. I hope he can see some differences in the next year.