Greek Team Made 'Serious' Offer to Sign NBA Superstar
A Greek basketball team owner has his sights set on an NBA superstar, and he's proposed a "serious" offer.
Panathinaikos Basketball Club owner Dimitrios Giannakopoulos has made a serious bid to sign NBA star Nikola Jokic, according to reports on the Euro Insiders podcast. Giannakopoulos informed Anthony Slater of ESPN that he submitted a serious proposal to both Jokic's team and the player himself, but received a rejection. Jokic has one year remaining on his contract, which includes a player option to opt out after the upcoming season.
The Greek team owner's offer is likely to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, given Jokic's total contract value of $121.8 million and his eligibility for a maximum extension of $278 million over four years. This figure is significantly less than the $359.5 million Jokic will earn from a five-year deal with the Nuggets beginning in July 2027, according to ESPN NBA insider Bobby Marks.
The Greek club has previously attempted to sign NBA players, most notably when Jonas Valanciunas nearly left the Nuggets to join Panathinaikos last season. Valanciunas, who played 65 games for Denver and averaged 8.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game, is now playing in Lithuania.
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