Sports

Jusuf Nurkic reveals what went wrong with the Suns during Mike Budenholzer's stint

Nairavoice · Jun 2, 2026 · 2 min read

Jusuf Nurkic reveals what went wrong with the Suns during Mike Budenholzer’s stint originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Phoenix Suns have had a rough few years, but it was at its worst during the 2024-25 season. This was when Kevin Durant was still on the team, and they were coached by NBA champion coach Mike Budenholzer.

It was a promising team led by Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal. Despite the abundance of talent, they did not even make it into the Play-In Tournament, finishing 11th with a 36-46 record.

Jusuf Nurkic gives a low-down on the issues with the Suns in 2024-25

For a team that had the level of talent they had, finishing outside the Play-In is proof they had to make significant changes. Not just the roster, but also with the coach, as Budenholzer was let go after only one season.

In a scathing interview about many points of his career, Jusuf Nurkic gave some context behind what happened with the Suns and why they were such a disappointing team in the 2024-25 season.

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Nurkic was quite candid in his interview on X&O’s Chat. It was an honest chat that detailed moments throughout his career, but his stint with the Suns caught a lot of people’s attention, especially when it was about Durant and coach Bud.

“He was literally explaining to Kevin Durant how to score a basket. If he had been telling me, or to (Eric) Gordon or Royce (O’Neale) or Grayson (Allen), whatever. That’s like explaining to a pilot how to fly a plane… The whole system felt absurd,” Nurkic said about the Suns’ struggles under Budenholzer.

Unfortunately, Nurkic also revealed something about Budenholzer’s personal life. It has been promptly called out across social media. In terms of the basketball aspect, telling Durant how to score points, that is objectively a bad move.

It can alienate some players, and it seems Nurkic was not a fan. The rest of the team probably disliked the system as well, which led to the roster changing ahead of the 2025-26 season.