Although the Phoenix Suns continue to get mentioned as a potential landing spot for Jimmy Butler, adding another star player is not the only area of concern for this roster right now. Their most urgent need for upgrade is the center position, with Jusuf Nurkic becoming unplayable at times so far this season.
On top of that, he has struggled with a couple of injuries and looks every bit the limited and plodding big man that the Portland Trail Blazers were eager to give up on in order to get Deandre Ayton. Not that the Suns lost that trade - they also added Grayson Allen who has been a key player for them - but the time to move off Nurkic has come.
Which is why there is rumored interest in Nikola Vucevic.
That's according to the always excellent Marc Stein of The Stein Line, who mentioned in his most recent substack that the Suns have interest in the former two-time All-Star big. Now 34-years-old and despite having obvious defensive limitations, Vucevic would represent a clear upgrade over Nurkic on this roster.
Going back to his days carrying an awful Orlando Magic team he was one of the best offensive bigs in the league, and this season is shooting an insane 45.6 percent from deep. In other words, the exact kind of skill set that Suns' head coach Mike Budenholzer could lean into and make his team even more dangerous with offensively.
On the other end of the court Vucevic has made some strides, but manning the paint at an elite level would not be why the franchise goes and gets the Montenegrin. Unfortunately for the Suns though - as they are a second apron team - doing this kind of deal is going to improve just as difficult as trying to acquire Butler.
The Bulls for their part would likely part with Vucevic if it meant getting some kind of draft compensation and an expiring deal back. Chicago looks about ready to enter a re-tooling phase, and Vucevic does not match that timeline. But with Vucevic making more money this season than Nurkic, the Suns can't do a straight up deal for the two. Assuming that is that the Bulls would take Nurkic.
They also can't stack salaries together to make a trade work either, another drawback of being in that second apron. If you attempt to add a third team with tons of cap space like the Detroit Pistons, it doesn't make the situation any easier. You'd also need to give the Pistons a good reason to get involved, and the Suns don't have one for them.
So while this would be a clear upgrade in The Valley, the interest in Vucevic will have to remain as just that for now. Interest that can go nowhere else. He would be an improvement that if not for being in the second apron would also be a realistic target for the Suns. But for now at least, this is not going to be.