Center Nick Richards scores 21 off the bench in Suns debut vs. Pistons

Suns center Nick Richards scored 21 points off the bench in his on-court debut as Phoenix picked up a 125-121 win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.

Richards first came off the bench at the 7:45 mark of the first quarter.

In his first six-minute stint, Richards tallied one point, four rebounds and one assist. He also picked up a technical foul for finishing a dead-ball putback through Detroit forward Simone Fontecchio.

The big man was more productive as a scorer in his second quarter stint, finishing the half with 11 points (4-for-4 shooting), five rebounds (including two of Phoenix’s three offensive rebounds in the half) and an assist.

Nick Richards and1 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Ooi3fcEd4l

— Cage (@ridiculouscage) January 18, 2025

Richards finish the game a +22 with 11 rebounds and shot 7-of-8 from the field to go along with his 21 points.

How and why did Suns acquire Nick Richards?

The Suns traded for Richards on Wednesday, sending Josh Okogie and draft capital to the Charlotte Hornets while also receiving a second-round draft pick. Richards is expected to be Phoenix’s starting center once acclimated.

“I think it’ll help us out a lot. Rebounding, helping with the defensive presence at the rim,” Grayson Allen told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo on Friday. “(On) offense, he’ll be giving us another lob threat, athletic finisher. So I think a lot of us are looking forward to getting him in the mix and looking at some different lineups with him.”

Jusuf Nurkic, Phoenix’s starting center to begin the year, remained out with an illness. Mason Plumlee, who started the game, and rookie Oso Ighodaro have manned the position since Nurkic’s last appearance on Jan. 7.

A 2020 second-round pick, Richards has been quietly impactful in Charlotte over the past three years as a rim-roller — he shot 69% last season — and rebounder.

The 7-footer is averaging 8.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 21 minutes per game this season while shooting 56% overall.

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