Joe Camporeale/USA Today

Suns Make Surprising Roster Move Amid Center Position Battle

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Nathaniel Holloway | Last updated Jan 29, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Phoenix Suns made a surprising roster move on Tuesday as they continue to figure out their center rotation.

Phoenix announced on Tuesday that they had assigned rookie center Oso Ighodaro to the G League Valley Suns. Ighodaro will now see playing time everyday due to his recent decreased minutes in the NBA.

Of course, the Suns’ addition of Nick Richards had led to Ighodaro’s minutes decreasing over the past few weeks. In Richards’ five games with the Suns, Ighodaro averaged just 7.3 minutes per game and he did not play in Phoenix’s last two contests.

It is clear that Richards is the Suns’ new starting center, but Phoenix still has to figure out their frontcourt rotation. Head coach Mike Budenholzer has used Mason Plumlee as the backup center and has been running just a two-man rotation between him and Richards.

Due to this, Jusuf Nurkić has seen his playing time become nearly nonexistent as the Suns continue to look for a potential trade suitor. Ighodaro has also seen his minutes become basically nonexistent, which is the major reason Phoenix elected to send the rookie to the G League to give him more playing time.

This season, Ighodaro is averaging 3.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game while shooting 55.8% from the field. He is averaging 16.1 minutes per game, but as the Suns continue to search for another player to upgrade their center position, it is likely that he will eventually fall out of the rotation completely.

With Ighodaro now in the G League, he will be able to continue to develop as he should see an increase in minutes compared to his time at the NBA level.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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