Nurkic (ankle) has been ruled out for Friday's game against the Rockets, Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic reports.
As expected, Nurkic has been downgraded from doubtful to out. Per Rankin, the big man suffered the injury during Wednesday's practice and tried to play through it during Thursday's loss to Dallas. In his absence, Drew Eubanks is a candidate to start at center. Thaddeus Young, who recently joined the team, could be integrated into the rotation as well, while Phoenix will also deploy plenty of small-ball lineups, which should benefit Royce O'Neale.