Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic will likely hear his name in trade rumors this offseason while the franchise searches for an avenue to add an impact player following a 33-49 season.
Nurkic said hearing his name mentioned in trade talk is par for the course and not bothersome.
“Almost every year I have my family calling me and it’s like, ‘They’re saying this, they are saying that,’” Nurkic said. “It happens every year. One year, they might be right.”
Should that day arrive, Nurkic said he would be understanding. But he made it clear that he wants to be in Portland.
“As long as I’m wanted, if people want me here, I’m going to be here,” Nurkic said. “I’m not going to ask for a trade to try to go somewhere else.”
Then Nurkic said something that summed up the entire situation quite nicely.
“If they think they can get a better player for me, then I don’t know what they are waiting for,” Nurkic said.
Touché.
Nurkic presents quite the conundrum for the Blazers. He’s good but not an All-Star-caliber center. Upgrades exist but aren’t easily attainable. Trading Nurkic would mean replacing him, which wouldn’t be easy. Then again, dealing him might become necessary should his contract be needed to match salaries in a large deal.
The Blazers re-signed Nurkic last offseason to a four-year, $70 million deal because they valued him. And he rewarded that faith for the most part. He set career bests in field goal percentage (51.9%), three-point shooting (36.1%) and two-point field goal shooting (56.7%).
His 13.3 points per game were solid from the fourth scoring option behind Damian Lillard, Jerami Grant and Anfernee Simons. Nurkic led the team with 9.1 rebounds per game.
A knock on Nurkic has been his lack of shooting touch around the basket. His two-point shooting was an improvement but still pales in comparison to high-end centers such as Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis (63.9%) and Atlanta’s Clint Capela (65.4%). Nurkic simply misses too many shots near the basket to be an elite scorer.
However, the Blazers’ defense was undoubtedly better when Nurkic was healthy. Portland’s ability to disrupt opposing offenses dipped tremendously when Nurkic missed extensive time starting in January.
Maybe the most criticized aspect of his game is availability. That is a bit overblown. Nurkic missed 30 games this season, but 10 came after the team began sitting players in an effort to lose and increase their odds in the NBA draft lottery. Nurkic, in reality, played in 52 of the 72 games he was allowed to play in. Not great, but it’s a more accurate representation of his availability.
Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard high-fives teammate Jusuf Nurkic after a score as the Portland Trail Blazers face the Utah Jazz in an NBA game at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023.Sean Meagher/The Oregonian
Last season, Nurkic missed 26 games, with 16 coming after the team began adding key players to the injured list, also to improve draft lottery position. Up to that point, Nurkic appeared in 56 of 59 games.
Add up the past two seasons and Nurkic has played in 108 of a possible 131 games that he was permitted to play. In today’s NBA, that’s a workhorse.
Regardless of availability, on some nights Nurkic simply doesn’t have it. On those nights, the Blazers turned to Drew Eubanks, who brings high energy and can make an impact in short minutes. But playing extensive minutes can lead to his deficiencies being exposed by legitimate starting centers.
At the very least, the Blazers must explore adding a big man with more veteran savvy to back up Nurkic, while maybe keeping Eubanks as the third center. That, however, could be a tough trick to complete.
Imagine then how difficult it could be to replace Nurkic altogether.
That likely only becomes possible should the Blazers pull off a major trade. The star coming in will likely have a hefty salary that the Blazers must match with salary going out. The Blazers, a team over the cap, can only receive 125% (plus $100,000) of the contracts sent out.
Nurkic wouldn’t net a major star alone. Such a deal would likely include Shaedon Sharpe or Anfernee Simons. Salary matching a hefty contract in a trade involving Sharpe, who will make $6.3 million next season, could require Nurkic’s contract being included. He will make $16.9 million next season. But Nurkic’s contract might not be required to match salaries in a deal involving Simons, scheduled to make $24.1 million next season.
Attractive unrestricted free agent centers who could be available to replace Nurkic are Dallas’ Christian Wood, Milwaukee’s Brook Lopez and Toronto’s Jakob Poeltl. New Orleans’ Jaxon Hayes will be an unrestricted free agent.
Still, being over the cap would require some fancy maneuvering to make an offer to any of the centers listed above.
The Nurkic question will be one tossed about plenty this offseason. If he is not back next season, that likely means the Blazers pulled off a mega deal. If Nurkic does return, when healthy, he still presents a strong option in the middle and he wants to be in Portland to help Lillard and the Blazers win.
“I try my best to do whatever they were asking me to do,” Nurkic said.
— Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook). Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts
