Utah Jazz Lose Jusuf Nurkic To Season Ending Surgery

Jusuf Nurkic will have nasal surgery and is out for the rest of the 2025-26 season, the latest blow to a Utah frontcourt already ravaged by injuries. Nurkic averaged a double-double this year (10.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists) across 41 games, but he joins Walker Kessler and Jaren Jackson Jr. on the sideline with "season-ending" procedures. At 18-39 and saddled with a $500,000 fine for alleged tanking, the Jazz look more likely to protect draft positioning while Kyle Filipowski and Kevin Love take on bigger roles. Merlin sees a team bending toward rebuilding by necessity. Losing three starting-caliber bigs in one season strips any playoff hope and accelerates development chances for younger pieces. Expect Utah to lean into minutes for Filipowski and to treat late games as scouting sessions for 2026.