The Utah Jazz are off to a poor 5-12 start this 2025-26 NBA season. On top of that, Jazz center Walker Kessler is out for the season with an injury.
Kessler was a common trade candidate in plenty of rumors, but now he is sidelined, and it's a tough blow for Utah as well. Lauri Markkanen is another Jazz player whose name has been placed in trade rumblings, so there is a lot of activity in Utah right now.
And, yet another big man could be headed out of Utah at some point this season.
NBA insider Marc Stein revealed some insight in his latest Substack, and one was about Jusuf Nurkic as a potential trade piece for Utah.
‘Jusuf Nurkić, meanwhile, has performed well enough in Utah that he's also expected to generate some interest from rival teams as he plays out his own $19.3 million expiring deal.'
In 2024-25, Nurkic was with the Phoenix Suns before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets. He was then traded to the Jazz in the Colin Sexton deal, so it has been a lot of moving for the veteran big man.
Nurkic has played in 24 games this year for the Jazz, averaging a career-low 7.5 points with 9.6 rebounds, but he is a name to watch as the deadline approaches.
He was initially selected by the Denver Nuggets in the 2014 NBA Draft, but was then traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for Mason Plumlee at the deadline. Now, his name is again in trade discussions, and he could be a name to watch.
