Former Sun Named Among Most Overrated Centers

Former Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic was named in Fadeaway World's most overrated centers list recently.

Nurkic, on the list alongside former Suns No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton, is also accompanied by Rudy Gobert, Mitchell Robinson and Nikola Vucevic.

"Jusuf Nurkic is skilled offensively, but slow-footed defensively and prone to injury. While he puts up decent stats, his inability to anchor a defense makes him overrated as a starting center. We are worried that Nurkic might not have an NBA job soon if he doesn't shake the image he has," wrote Eddie Bitar.

Suns fans might certainly agree.

Nurkic arrived to Phoenix in the Ayton trade and though his rebounding abilitiy and distribution flashed, he was a liability defensively and simply wasn't a good fit in the Suns' previous star-studded lineup featuring Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal.

Nurkic was dealt this past trade deadline to the Charlotte Hornets, and before he left, he told The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin he and previous coach Mike Budenholzer didn't speak much.

“We don’t have a relationship,” Nurkic said prior to his trade. “So, it’s fine. For me, just be a pro and do the best I can. Work and stay ready for whatever might be, but there is no chaos or bringing that to this team. They already have plenty of it. Trying to be as professional as I can and work my ass off for something else.”

Nurkic was traded this past summer to the Utah Jazz.

As for the Suns, they'll enter this season with Mark Williams, Nick Richards and Khaman Maluach in their center rotation.

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