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Jusuf Nurkić was at a movie theater in Europe with his wife, Emina, when he got the call that he was being traded from the Charlotte Hornets to the Utah Jazz.
A couple of days later he was in Utah, trying his best to get past jet lag and adjust to the time zone changes.
Though Nurkić turns 31 in August, he is now the oldest player on the Jazz roster, immediately thrusting him into the role of a distinguished veteran on a team full of young players. While that’s a surprising development for the 7-footer, it’s one that he’s looking forward to.
“I‘m excited, first and foremost adding to a lot of young guys who can play and are super talented, athletic. It’s a dream for me,” Nurkić said. “Now as the veteran — it even sounds crazy that I’m the oldest — I’m looking forward to just to bringing leadership for them, showing the way, and how to be a pro, it’s super important for them."
Nurkić only arrived in Utah on Wednesday, but already has realized that he’s going to have to reset what his preconceived notions were about the state.
Over the years, he has always respected the fans and enjoyed playing in Utah, but now he’s seeing that there’s more to the state than meets the eye.
“I always loved the fans, and I felt like it was always tough to play here,” Nurkić said. “But knowing what I’ve known, in 11 years in the NBA, about Utah, I feel like I had to delete it. Because what I just saw yesterday and today I feel like it was super nice state and I was surprised. It reminds me a little bit of Portland and Phoenix, kind of mixed but it’s just unique.”
On the flight to Utah, in the airport and then as he was looking at houses over the last couple of days, Nurkić said he was approached by fans who expressed their intense love for the team, something he appreciated.
Then, as he was house hunting, he appreciated the size of properties, the outdoorsy vibes, the family atmosphere and the abundance of coffee shops and restaurants.
Nurkić didn’t really say what his assumptions about Utah were before arriving, but that he was pleasantly surprised once he started to get a feel for his new surroundings.
“I’m just an easy, chill guy,” he said. “You’re gonna see me pretty much everywhere in Utah, just being outside as much as possible, and I’m happy I saw there’s plenty of coffee shops and food, so just hanging out with the fam and nothing special.”
New with the Jazz
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“We’re not going to be able to teach a whole lot in four days in terms of schemes and systems. But we can set the bar for the ball pressure we want to have, the type of pace we want to have.” — Jazz assistant coach Scott Morrison on Summer League expectations.
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