{"id":750314,"date":"2026-06-02T07:03:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T07:03:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/750314\/"},"modified":"2026-06-02T07:03:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T07:03:18","slug":"jusuf-nurkic-explains-exactly-how-mike-budenholzer-ruined-the-suns-chemistry-in-explosive-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/750314\/","title":{"rendered":"Jusuf Nurkic Explains Exactly How Mike Budenholzer Ruined the Suns Chemistry in Explosive Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHOENIX \u2014 Jusuf Nurkic<\/a> explains exactly how Mike Budenholzer ruined the Suns<\/a> chemistry with his drinking problem and strange tactics. The aftermath of the Phoenix Suns\u2019 disappointing 2024-25 season has officially erupted into the public eye. In a jaw-dropping podcast appearance that is actively sending shockwaves across the NBA landscape, veteran center Jusuf Nurkic<\/a> leveled stunning personal and professional allegations against his former head coach, Mike Budenholzer.<\/p>\n

Jusuf Nurkic Explains Exactly How Mike Budenholzer Ruined the Suns Chemistry and His Drinking Problem in Explosive Interview<\/p>\n

As blasted across social media by viral aggregates, fans are reacting in disbelief as Jusuf Nurkic explains exactly how Mike Budenholzer ruined the Suns chemistry in an explosive interview. Speaking on the X&O\u2019s CHAT podcast, the big man laid out a scathing, detailed autopsy of how a championship-caliber team boasting Kevin Durant,<\/a> Devin Booker<\/a>, and Bradley Beal<\/a> collapsed from the inside out.<\/p>\n

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\u201cExplaining to Kevin Durant How to Score a Basket\u201d\"JusufApr 9, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer reacts during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

According to Nurkic, the environment under Budenholzer turned toxic almost immediately upon the team\u2019s arrival at training camp. The veteran coach reportedly established a confrontational dynamic with the entire roster, alienating role players and cornerstone superstars alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe became extremely negative from the very first day of training camp,\u201d Nurkic revealed during his appearance. \u201cToward everyone. Literally, there was no difference whether it was Booker, me, or someone else\u2026 every single practice was: \u2018You\u2019re no good. You\u2019d be better off just getting dressed and leaving. You shouldn\u2019t even be playing basketball\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The breakdown in basketball logic reached a breaking point during tactical sessions. Nurkic detailed a specific level of system absurdity where Budenholzer attempted to micromanage one of the greatest scoring weapons in the history of the sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was literally explaining to Kevin Durant how to score a basket,\u201d Nurkic stated. \u201cIf he had been telling it to me, or Gordon, or Royce O\u2019Neal or Grayson Allen<\/a>, whatever, but explaining to Kevin Durant how to score? That\u2019s like explaining to a pilot how to fly a plane. To me and to everyone else, that whole system felt so absurd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Serious Allegations of Locker Room Dysfunction\"SepSep 30, 2024; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) and Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic (20) and Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) and Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) and Phoenix Suns guard Tyus Jones<\/a> (21) pose for a photo during Media Day at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

The friction between the center and the head coach was not an entirely new development. Tensions had bubbled under the surface for months, dating back to January last year when Nurkic was abruptly benched and displaced in the rotation. At the time, Nurkic openly stated that he and Budenholzer possessed \u201cno relationship,\u201d a reality that clearly deteriorated as the season progressed toward its unceremonious conclusion.<\/p>\n

However, the latest details shared on the podcast go far beyond standard frustration over playing time. Nurkic claimed that Budenholzer\u2019s personal struggles actively compromised his professional capacity to lead an NBA franchise.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThen later you find out that the guy really was, I don\u2019t know if this should be said, but an alcoholic, someone who genuinely had a drinking problem,\u201d Nurkic alleged on the podcast. \u201cPeople knew about it\u2026 He would schedule one-on-one meetings just to provoke people.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the Phoenix roster experiment now a failure and key pieces already gone by year\u2019s end<\/a>, these revelations provide a chilling look at one of the most dysfunctional team environments in recent memory. This interview will likely spark intense debate among Suns faithful for some time to come.<\/p>\n

Credit:\u00a9 Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PHOENIX \u2014 Jusuf Nurkic explains exactly how Mike Budenholzer ruined the Suns chemistry with his drinking problem and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":750315,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3791],"tags":[7,3086,2292,7781,5088,938,3358,6,179,2065,472,4045,604,6279],"class_list":["post-750314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-phoenix-suns","tag-basketball","tag-bradley-beal","tag-devin-booker","tag-grayson-allen","tag-jusuf-nurkic","tag-kevin-durant","tag-mike-budenholzer","tag-nba","tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","tag-phoenix","tag-phoenix-suns","tag-phoenixsuns","tag-suns","tag-tyus-jones"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116679239552011320","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/750314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=750314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/750314\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/750315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=750314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=750314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=750314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}