On Tuesday, the Sacramento Kings agreed to trade Jonas Valanciunas to the Nuggets for Dario Saric. The deal will help free up some cap space for Sacramento and give Denver the Nikola Jokic backup it has been searching for. That's assuming it goes through, and on Thursday, a major wrench was thrown into the deal.
Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews reported that Valanciunas is considering leaving the NBA for the EuroLeague. Urbonas wrote that the center is "close" to accepting an offer from Panathinaikos Athens, a three-year deal that is reportedly worth $13 million. He added that Valanciunas was "pleased" with the trade to Denver, but that playing for Panathinaikos would give the center "long-term stability, a major role, and a team built to contend for a EuroLeague title."
NBA insider Marc Stein confirmed that returning to Europe is appealing to Valanciunas, which would require a contract buyout. Stein added that the Kings-Nuggets trade cannot be made official until Sunday, July 6, and it's a deal that Sacramento needs to go through. Hopefully, Jokic and Denver can convince the big man to stay in the NBA.
The agreed-to trade between Denver and Sacramento to swap Dario Saric for Jonas Valanciunas cannot be made official until Sunday.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) July 3, 2025
The Kings still need the trade to go through for salary cap reasons, but the Nuggets’ ability to convince Valanciunas to stay in the NBA is TBD. https://t.co/WeGd8XhxUn
Jonas Valanciunas is considering leaving the NBA to play in Greece
This report is puzzling for several reasons. It's not like the Kings agreed to trade Valanciunas to a team like the Jazz. He has the opportunity to play for a team that won a title two years ago and has one of the best players in the world on the roster. The Nuggets' moves over the past few days have proven that the organization is all-in on winning a championship.
Denver is a great situation for Valanciunas to land in after he spent the second half of last season in Sacramento. He's set to make $10.4 million in 2025-26 and has a non-guaranteed salary of $10 million in 2026-27. The allure of returning overseas and possessing financial stability seems to matter more to Valanciunas than one might have initially thought.
There is a chance that Valanciunas, who is 33, might've already played his final game in the NBA. If that's the case, it happened with the Kings.
This is a situation that nobody saw coming, and it's one that the Kings will be monitoring as more details emerge. Sacramento needs an assist from Denver. Convince the big man to stay!