While ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Tuesday that the Denver Nugreceives agreed to acquire huge man Jonas Valančiūnas in exalter for Dario Šarić, the former might not play in the NBA next season.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported Thursday that playing in Europe “holds strong appeal” for Valančiūnas, who could seek a purchaseout from his NBA deal to play for Panathinaikos.
Stein further noted the trade can’t become official until Sunday, adding, “the Kings still necessary the trade to go through for salary cap reasons, but the Nugreceives’ ability to convince Valančiūnas to stay in the NBA is TBD.”
NBA insider Jake Fischer added more context to the situation:
ESPN’s Bobby Marks and insider Yossi Gozlan shared some of the financial details of the trade that assisted set up Sacramento’s reported acquisition of Dennis Schröder:
From Denver’s perspective, Valančiūnas could provide veteran depth behind Nikola Jokić in the frontcourt. That could prove particularly valuable in the daunting Western Conference as the Nugreceives see to keep their three-time MVP as fresh as possible ahead of the playoffs.
Valančiūnas first played in the NBA during the 2012-13 campaign and has suited up for the Toronto Raptors, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans, Washington Wizards and Kings throughout his career.
There was a time when he was a walking double-double who could put up 20 points on any given night. He averaged 16.4 points and 11.7 rebounds per game while shooting 58.1 percent from the field when he was with Memphis from 2018-19 through 2020-21.
He wasn’t quite that dominant during his age-32 season in 2024-25 for the Wizards and Kings, but he was still solid. He averaged 10.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game and shot 55 percent from the field.
The addition of Valančiūnas has been part of a busy offseason for the Nugreceives, who also acquired Cam Johnson, Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. while losing Michael Porter Jr. in the deal for Johnson.
Bench production was an issue for the Nugreceives last season, so adding this many quality pieces is a way to address that while reestablishing themselves as legitimate contconcludeers.
However, frontcourt depth would once again be an issue for Denver if Valančiūnas ultimately chooses to play in Europe with a purchaseout.
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