Shams: Kings Trade Jonas Valunciunas to the Nuggets for Dario Saric; *UPDATE* - Trade is Now Official

[og15]

Jonas is a loser if hes seriously considering this and not just using it as a negotiating tactic. By far best chance he has at a ring but i suppose some players just like posting empty calories double doubles on teams w/ no expectations. I see why Raptors traded his ass for Marc lol and won a title for it

What do you mean by no expectations here? By going to Panathinaikos he's now expected to win the EuroLeague, the Greek championship and the Greek Cup. Failure to win all 3 will be considered a disappointment and the transfer will be seen as a failure, especially if they don't win one of the Greek championship or the EuroLeague.

There'd be no pressure on Valanciunas if he stayed in Denver, though. No one would blame him for Denver not winning.

Yea, this seems like a higher pressure move for him if that's the gauge we are going by. On Denver he would just be a guy that Jokic took to a championship

[ItsDanger]

JV making a lifestyle choice. Possibly winning a championship as a backup might not mean a lot him. Role players are important but current structure seems to diminish them.

[UcanUwill]

Why is Valanciunas doing this? It's not like he's cooked, he's still an NBA starter caliber

He will have more stability and possibly a bigger role, and compete for Euroleague title. Hes been traded twice this year,

Hopefully, he will be more successful than last Lithuanian national team starting center joining Panathinaikos. PAO fans used to say that Javtokas was worst player to ever play for PAO, obviously a huge exaggeration.

Overall, we love Lithuanian players and they have contributed a lot to some of our titles. Grigonis, Šiškauskas, Mačiulis, our beloved Jasikevičius who will coach us at some point in the next years. Personally, i love even Lekavičius, he was good as back up pg. And Gudaitis was washed up when he played for us, yet he did the best he could.
Valančiūnas will be treated and loved like past legends (Bodiroga, Saras, Batiste etc)

I do not even remember Gudaitis playing for Panathinaikos, those were dark years I assume, I forget it completely. Gudaitis is washed, sadly that knee injury killed his Euroleague ability, before that he was killing it in Milan. That said, Gudaitis was very close to beating Žalgiris in the LKL finals this year.

Very sad for Lekavičius, if you noticed, he dropped from Žalgiris rotation entirely, Trinchieri didn't like him at all, he is shortest guy in Euroleague and LKL, he obviously had limitations, but man he was so fast and energetic, he had value. Now his contract expired and I am not sure where will he play, there is no way he signing with Žalgiris or any Euroleague team I imagine, his value was tanked so bad.

Valančiūnas will still be one of the best players at Euroleague level IMO, even tho even in EL, he will definitely have struggles defensively. I would expect his shot blocking numbers to improve in Europe tho, people forget he has 7'5 wingspan, and in FIBA tournaments, he blocks a lot of shots, just for some reason, does not translate on NBA court. I think he will still protect the rim just fine, but yeah, Euroleague guards are so talented now, they will pick and roll him to death.

We have seen guy like Ante Zizic didn't make it, and he is very talented offensively, he is basically Croatian version of Jahlil Okafor I would say, but guy was just too slow for Euroleague, he can not be played, at least coaches believe that now. Valančiūnas is way more talented than Zizic, but the arhtype is the same. Jonas tho can also shoot 3s pretty well, its only that his form is very slow, so he is not volume shooter, he will only shoot when wide open since it takes him a lot of time to shoot simply.

[levon]

Wouldn't be surprised if the political climate influenced this decision. A lot of internationals are just steering clear of America.

[Mirotic12]

If you go back in time Dominique Wilkins had signed for Panathinaikos in 1995 for 3,5mil.
In today's money i guess that's a lot more.
He was granted a 4 store villa of his choosing, 2 cars and all taxes paid by the team.

Teams like CSKA Moscow, Panathinaikos, Fenerbahce, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Olympiacos can offer big contracts and offer amenities of that kind. There's also no salary cap in Europe.

According to the first inflation calculator that popped up on Google, that would be equal to $7.2 million net income in 2024.

Europe economy was way stronger compared to now. Also the biggest NBA contract was DRob with 7.3mln usd (bruto) in 95. So Dominique 3.5mln netto in europe was equal to NBA the biggest contract.

NBA growth is phenomenal, now Curry contract alone is bigger than combined 3 or 4 smallest Euroleague teams budgets.

Not quite.

The 3 smallest budgets in EuroLeague for the 2025-26 season are:

Saski Baskonia: $17.7 million dollars
Paris Basket: $23.6 million dollars
Zalgiris Kaunas: $23.6 million dollars

= $64.9 million dollars

Steph Curry's salary is $59.6 million.

If the league CBA revenue percentage deduction kicks in next season, like it did in this last season, then his salary is even less than that. This last season, because of the revenue deduction, his salary was reduced by like 10%. So that same thing could also happen next season, bringing his salary down to more like $54 million.

[Mirotic12]

Why is Valanciunas doing this? It's not like he's cooked, he's still an NBA starter caliber

He will have more stability and possibly a bigger role, and compete for Euroleague title. Hes been traded twice this year,

Hopefully, he will be more successful than last Lithuanian national team starting center joining Panathinaikos. PAO fans used to say that Javtokas was worst player to ever play for PAO, obviously a huge exaggeration.

Obviously they misspelled Papagiannis.

Neither Javtokas, nor Papagiannis is in any way at all even remotely in the discussion as the worst player of Panathinaikos. Some fans just love to be haters for no reason.

[HotRocks34]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

[levon]

Athens is a chill place to live. Not far from beaches and food is better/healthier than big macs and fries. He's near the end of his career. This is his "miami" move. I don't blame JV at all.

Yeah if I was in his position I would also leave, even if it means leaving money on the table. It's his life. In his position I'd rather chill in Athens and be a 4 hour flight from Vilnius than have to back up Jokic at altitude.

[UglyBugBall]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

He hasn't stepped on the court yet so it's not poor form. He's letting Denver know now so they can adapt in the off season. That's why we got an off season

[HotRocks34]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

He hasn't stepped on the court yet so it's not poor form. He's letting Denver know now so they can adapt in the off season. That's why we got an off season

I'm just going to assume that this post is a joke.

Denver traded a player for Val, who is under contract, and missed out on pursuing other players because they went after Val.

Val's choice doesn't just affect him. It blows things for Denver, hence the unprofessional angle.

For the Fever in the WNBA, the player punking out actually worked to their advantage because they replaced her with someone who fit better. We'll see what happens in Denver.

[UcanUwill]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

Jonas wont force his way out if they do not agree on mutual termination in upcoming days. He wants to leave and made it known, if they do not agree, he will play for Denver Nuggets.

[zero rings]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

He hasn't stepped on the court yet so it's not poor form. He's letting Denver know now so they can adapt in the off season. That's why we got an off season

If he had told Denver he intended to leave BEFORE the trade, that would be one thing. But we’ve already traded for him, and the free agent market has mostly dried up.

If I’m Kroenke I’m telling Jonas to suit the f*ck up.

[HotRocks34]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

Jonas wont force his way out if they do not agree on mutual termination in upcoming days. He wants to leave and made it known, if they do not agree, he will play for Denver Nuggets.

Good info. Thanks.

I've always liked Val and wish him the best. I just don't like when players try to force their way out of contracts, whether it's DeWanna Bonner (WNBA), Val or others. Sometimes it's unavoidable but I'm just not a fan. If you're going to do that, don't put the team in a bad spot so they miss out on other free agents, etc.

[UcanUwill]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html




This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

Jonas wont force his way out if they do not agree on mutual termination in upcoming days. He wants to leave and made it known, if they do not agree, he will play for Denver Nuggets.

Good info. Thanks.

I've always liked Val and wish him the best. I just don't like when players try to force their way out of contracts, whether it's Anthony Davis, DeWanna Bonner (WNBA) or Val. Sometimes it's unavoidable but I'm just not a fan. If you're going to do that, don't put the team in a bad spot so they miss out on other free agents, etc.

I completely agree with you, and it is very disappointing when it happens. I doubt Jonas forces his way out in the worst sense, I think he will force his way out by putting knowledge that he does not really want to be there, and NBA teams know that having guys who don't want to be there is just not that great of a strategy.

It is still very disappointing, especially for Denver, but it is human factor, guy was traded two times this year, he has two young boys, he already promised that he will end his career in his home town and his career is coming to an end, man just wants what he wants. Frustrating that his contract gets in his way and I would like him to honor his contract, he unmistakenly wants out of it, but as I said, if he does not get his way, I have no doubt he will grind it out, he just does not have snake in him. Even this year when LTU Federation coach kinda directly insulted him, Jonas stood up for himself but he did it as professional as 32 year young man could.

[HotRocks34]

Jonas wont force his way out if they do not agree on mutual termination in upcoming days. He wants to leave and made it known, if they do not agree, he will play for Denver Nuggets.

Good info. Thanks.

I've always liked Val and wish him the best. I just don't like when players try to force their way out of contracts, whether it's Anthony Davis, DeWanna Bonner (WNBA) or Val. Sometimes it's unavoidable but I'm just not a fan. If you're going to do that, don't put the team in a bad spot so they miss out on other free agents, etc.

I completely agree with you, and it is very disappointing when it happens. I doubt Jonas forces his way out in the worst sense, I think he will force his way out by putting knowledge that he does not really want to be there, and NBA teams know that having guys who don't want to be there is just not that great of a strategy.

It is still very disappointing, especially for Denver, but it is human factor, guy was traded two times this year, he has two young boys, he already promised that he will end his career in his home town and his career is coming to an end, man just wants what he wants. Frustrating that his contract gets in his way and I would like him to honor his contract, he unmistakenly wants out of it, but as I said, if he does not get his way, I have no doubt he will grind it out, he just does not have snake in him. Even this year when LTU Federation coach kinda directly insulted him, Jonas stood up for himself but he did it as professional as 32 year young man could.

Well said.

[NZB2323]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

I was looking forward to seeing Jonas on the Nuggets, but if I interview with 2 companies, I’m going to take the offer that is better for my family.

[UcanUwill]

Unprofessional move from Jonas. Bad form.

According to this journalist, the primary factor that drove Val to want to make the move was the offer from Panathinaikos, which came after Denver negotiated with Sacramento.

https://basketnews.com/news-227348-why-jonas-valanciunas-wants-to-leave-nuggets-for-panathinaikos.html

The Nuggets fan base was also happy with the acquisition, and Valanciunas himself was initially pleased with the outcome

So, what changed?

The Panathinaikos offer was the real game-changer.

This is not the way to do business. A similar issue played out this year in the WNBA where a player for the Indiana Fever forced her way out of the team after losing her starting role.

You signed the contract, honor the contract. If you want out, wait until the contract ends.

Lol at the wannabe political commentators here. There's a reason why the site has a Current Affairs section, and that's to keep often-poorly-informed non-basketball takes away from the hoops discussion.

I have no ill will towards Jonas but I don't like how he's approaching this. That being said, Denver may be content to let him go if he wants to leave.

I was looking forward to seeing Jonas on the Nuggets, but if I interview with 2 companies, I’m going to take the offer that is better for my family.

Yeah, but the problem is that he already has a contract with one of them, and contract is 8 months a year long. He is not FA, we do not have to forget that, in recent days, we Euros especially made it known how crazy we find the fact guys can just be traded against their wishes, but they know what they sign, thats just how it is, so I can not blame people for criticizing Jonas heavily here.

I also wanted to see Jonas on the Nuggets, finally a good team, been a while. I was planning to probably bet Nuggets Over and just be a Nuggets fan for a year.

[mkot]

if I interview with 2 companies, I’m going to take the offer that is better for my family.

He is not a free agent. He should not even go to the interview when he is already under contract.

[Exp0sed]

Jonas wont force his way out if they do not agree on mutual termination in upcoming days. He wants to leave and made it known, if they do not agree, he will play for Denver Nuggets.

Good info. Thanks.

I've always liked Val and wish him the best. I just don't like when players try to force their way out of contracts, whether it's Anthony Davis, DeWanna Bonner (WNBA) or Val. Sometimes it's unavoidable but I'm just not a fan. If you're going to do that, don't put the team in a bad spot so they miss out on other free agents, etc.

I completely agree with you, and it is very disappointing when it happens. I doubt Jonas forces his way out in the worst sense, I think he will force his way out by putting knowledge that he does not really want to be there, and NBA teams know that having guys who don't want to be there is just not that great of a strategy.

It is still very disappointing, especially for Denver, but it is human factor, guy was traded two times this year, he has two young boys, he already promised that he will end his career in his home town and his career is coming to an end, man just wants what he wants. Frustrating that his contract gets in his way and I would like him to honor his contract, he unmistakenly wants out of it, but as I said, if he does not get his way, I have no doubt he will grind it out, he just does not have snake in him. Even this year when LTU Federation coach kinda directly insulted him, Jonas stood up for himself but he did it as professional as 32 year young man could.

It's "frustrating" getting paid 10 million dollars a season to train and play basketball? that's news to me..

If Val is so frustrated, he can just give up those 10m and get released to sign anywhere he wants



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[canada_dry]

I really hope he stays.

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