Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic may not dominate the headlines that much when it comes to game highlights or record-breaking achievements, but there's one underrated statistic that is quite unheard of.
Unfortunately, it’s not that good.
According to ESPN’s Stats & Information Group via Chris Herring's article for FiveThirtyEight, the recent statistics declare the Nurkic is drawing the highest rate of flagrant fouls in the NBA, not just this year, but over the past two decades. The Bosnian national was the reason for four flagrant fouls of his opponents this season. This is twice more than any other player in the league. In fact, Nurkic accounts for over nine percent of flagrant fouls called this season.
In simpler words, he’s always getting whacked in the face.
Article Continues BelowNurkic joined the Blazers last February only to experience getting his first taste of injury. The 23-year-old had already lost two teeth after he got hit in the mouth for a rebound. And so he got his dental implants and decided to wear a protective mask. However, it still wasn’t enough to protect him. The unthinkable happened, and Nurkic got elbowed in the forehead. He even had stitches at the end of the year after colliding with Sixers J.J. Redick.
These are only a few of the hits Nurkic has received.
In his own words, Nurkic refers to this as a way for his opponents to “slow him down.” Still, the Blazers' 7-footer averages 15 points and eight rebounds per game.
Interestingly, Nurkic also adds that he is not really proud about always getting hit in the face. He also wishes that the league takes action to protect him. But as of now, there is nothing he can do but to simply go with the flow and do his best to avoid any further collisions.