Draymond Green went off on Jusuf Nurkic on Instagram for being a perennial playoff loser.
Draymond Green sent more shots towards Jusuf Nurkic after the Suns season ended with a sweep loss to the Timberwolves. The sweep means Nurkic’s career playoff record is 3-17, a 15% win rate. Green shared the statistic on Instagram and mocked the Bosnian center after all his trash-talk towards Green this season.
“Hope that brother gets the help he needs.”
Credit: @money23green/Instagram
Green used the same words Nurkic said to the media after their clash earlier this season where Green punched Nurkic during a game and was later suspended and sent to counseling.
Nurkic also tweeted a GIF saying ‘That’s all folks!’ after the Warriors were eliminated from the Play-In Tournament, taking shots at the end of their dynasty. Green responded to that on his podcast by laying into Nurkic.
“That’s all folks. You’ve got to be really careful when you’re not that successful and you try to take jabs at people. Because when you really don’t have control over your own success, when you don’t play a large enough role in your team’s success when you can’t really affect the outcome of the game… like you can go get 20 rebounds and lose a game. When you really don’t affect the outcome of the game, it’s really tough to take jabs at people when you can’t affect what your end result it!”
Nurkic averaged 7.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in the four losses to the Timberwolves in the 2024 Playoffs. While he advanced further than Green, both players had the same amount of wins in this year’s playoffs.
At least Green can take solace in the four titles he’s already won, as compared to Nurkic who has to reckon with his horrible playoff record.
Jusuf Nurkic’s Playoff Record Is Among The Worst In NBA History
Nurkic has played 20 playoff games in his career but has walked away with just three wins. Two of those wins came in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, where the Portland Trail Blazers lost 4-2 to a Denver Nuggets squad without Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., losing the series after being the odds-on favorite to advance. That was his last playoff appearance before the sweep loss this season.
Nurkic was swept in the 2018 Playoffs as well, losing in the first round to the Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday-led New Orleans Pelicans. He was injured for the Blazers’ 2019 run to the Western Conference Finals, missing out on the eight playoff wins they picked up in that run.
He averages 11.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in the playoffs. Nurkic plays his role while his stars get outmatched by the opposition. Nonetheless, the one successful run the Blazers made in his time with the franchise came when he was injured, so it’s worth analyzing if Nurkic is a bad postseason option.
The Phoenix Suns have minimal avenues to improve their team for next season, with Nurkic the only player on their team who can be traded and isn’t on a minimum contract, outside the three stars of the team. He’ll hope to get another crack at the playoffs next season, but there’s no guarantee he gets that chance with the Suns.