Jusuf Nurkic and Terry Stotts became intertwined Friday night as the Blazers’ coach played his starting center only 53 seconds in the fourth quarter of their close game with the Brooklyn Nets. Instead, Stotts turned to Ed Davis, which surprised most given Nurk’s success that night—not to mention the lack of foul trouble, either—and Davis’ inability to defend effectively down the stretch.
Nurkic was nowhere to be seen after the game, reportedly bolting before reporters got there. It also came out assistant coach David Vanterpool screamed at the big man for his lack hustle on defense.