Damian Lillard’s blockbuster move to the Milwaukee Bucks has upended the hierarchy of the league as the Mid-Western side is now the favorite to win it all next season in many people’s books. It’s not every day that a superstar of Lillard’s caliber changes teams. The massive trade involved a complicated ripple effect that led to a lot of pieces moving around in the league. As a result, Portland Trail Blazers star Jusuf Nurkić recently became a Phoenix Sun. Meanwhile, just days after the Lillard trade, Nurkić revealed his strong take on gun violence in America.
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Damian Lillard on his relationship with Jusuf Nurkic 💯 pic.twitter.com/4fEjIuh4oe
— NBA (@NBA) December 27, 2022
During their stint with the Portland Trail Blazers, Nurkić and Lillard grew pretty close. The two shared a bond of mutual respect and admiration. Portland’s superstar guard knew he could trust the veteran center during crucial moments of the game. Lillard and Nurkić never shied away from showering each other with praises during their time in PDX.
Jusuf Nurkić is not thrilled by the abundance of guns in America
During his first interaction with the media as a Phoenix Sun, Nurkić was asked the difference between his experience in his country of Bosnia and Herzegovina and his experience in America. The 29-year-old started by saying that the city of Portland, his home for the last few years, is pretty similar to his home city in Bosnia. He pointed out that the atmosphere in both places are pretty similar as well, the only notable difference being that the buildings in America are much taller.
Subsequently, Nurkić was also asked to name one thing that baffles him about Americans. In response, the Bosnian proceeded to underline the contentious topic of gun ownership in the country. The 7 ft center expressed his bewilderment at the sheer number of guns people privately own in America.
Jusuf Nurkic turned what was a fun question into addressing the number of guns in America and wishing people didn’t have them for the safety of kids. #Suns pic.twitter.com/EIZnmufpN3
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) October 2, 2023
The veteran center then proceeded to say that such a normalized culture of gun ownership was responsible for the skyrocketing cases of gun violence in America. “Why everybody have so many guns! That’s kind of, I still don’t understand to this day. Because I feel the kids should be safe in our schools…I think personally even if fake guns come up with social media, kids having in school, I think it’s a bad thing…But I think our kids, you know, if we can secure them the better world going forward, that would definitely be without guns,” Nurkić said.
The league has been strict on gun issues
Nurkić hails from the Balkan country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. People from that part of the world are no stranger to the absolute devastation wars can cause on the lives of commoners. Therefore, Nurkić’s perspective is quite understandable.
The NBA has been pretty strict about players flaunting weapons in public. They have reiterated that players have the responsibility to uphold the right things because so many kids look up to them. The league has even penalized Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant quite heavily for showcasing a gun during his Instagram Live sessions twice.
