The Suns won't waste any more time after Richards erupted for 21 points (7-8 FG, 7-9 FT), 11 rebounds, one assist and one steal over 29 minutes in his debut against the Pistons on Saturday. With Richards likely to remain in the starting lineup going forward, Mason Plumlee will retreat to the second unit.

The Phoenix Suns' center rotation was in a dire state recently. Phoenix hopes trading for Nick Richards from the Charlotte Hornets will help ease their concerns.

There was some belief Richards the Suns just snagged their new starting center, and Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro says Richards will indeed be inserted into the lineup when ready. ESPN's Shams Charania also is reporting the same thing.

Richards will come off the bench in his Phoenix debut as the backup center to Mason Plumlee. However, it wouldn't be surprising for Richards to fight for a starting job moving forward as he acclimates to his new team. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc.

Bradley Beal and Nurkic were benched for the Jan. 6 game at Philadelphia. Nurkic played that game and the next against Charlotte in the second of a road back-to-back, but Suns coach Mike Budenholzer didn't play him the next two games against Atlanta and Utah.

This is more than a change of scenery for new Phoenix Suns big Nick Richards. In being traded, Richards leaves a Charlotte franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2016 and joins one that’s looking to compete for championship.

Kevin Durant was excited when the Suns traded for Nick Richards, and explained why during Thursday's shootaround.

The Charlotte Hornets traded backup center Nick Richards and a second-round draft pick to the Phoenix Suns for guard Josh Okogie and three second-round draft picks on Wednesday night.

Richards - coupled with rookie stud Oso Ighodaro - will inject a very pointed surge of athleticism into the Suns' lineup. Last season Nick Richards had more dunks (120) than Nurkic and Plumlee combined (100) in 1000 fewer minutes.

The Phoenix Suns receive a B+ grade from ESPN's Kevin Pelton and CBS Sports' Sam Quinn in trading for Nick Richards to bolster the center spot.

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.

After posting 21 points and 11 rebounds off the bench in his Phoenix Suns debut Saturday, 7-footer Nick Richards will ... Looking ahead to 2025 sports year Mason Plumlee had been starting at ...