- Suns coach Mike Budenholzer doesn’t believe “benched” is the proper word to use with veteran center Jusuf Nurkic (Twitter video link from Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic). Nurkic was removed from the starting lineup on January 6 and hasn’t played since the following night. He’s currently getting back into game shape in Phoenix following a bout with the flu. “It’s a long season,” Budenholzer said. “He didn’t play a couple of games and now he’s been sick. He’s home reconditioning. We’ll see how he comes through when we go back.”