I Know Why Valanciunas Wants To Leave Denver

I Know Why Valanciunas Wants To Leave Denver

Few days ago, I dropped a video saying that the Denver Nuggets finally fixed their biggest issue, depth. And at the center of that, Giannis will. For once, Yakage had a real backup, and things finally made sense. Then, not even 3 hours later, my colleagues at Basket News broke the story that Yiannis is seriously considering leaving Denver to sign with a team in Greece called Penos. In this video, I’ll break down how we got here, why Valentunas even considered leaving a legit NBA contender, and what the hell this situation means going forward. Let’s rewind a bit. When the trade went down, Valentunas for Dario Shahic, it felt like a massive win for the Nuggets. They had finally found someone who could hold things down when Yokic rests. And Giannis seemed happy with it, too. He was joining a contender. He was filling a real need and it wasn’t hard to imagine him playing 15 to 18 minutes behind Yic or sometimes alongside him in short spurts. But sometimes things can change overnight. Out of the blue, my journalist colleagues at bas.com reported that Yiannis received a serious offer on the table from Ponet Cos 3 years 12 million net. That’s roughly $13 million in 3 years after taxes. Meanwhile, he was only guaranteed one year with Denver at about $10 million before taxes, which is similar amount of money when you look at it per year after taxes. Now, I know the immediate reaction from NBA fans is, “Wait, why would you leave Joic and a title contending team for Greece?” And trust me, at first I felt the same, but when you start looking at it from Giannis’ perspective, it actually isn’t that crazy. First of all, the role. In the last two years, Giannis has gone from a consistent NBA starter to being a backup on struggling teams. The Wizards were tanking. The Kings barely cracked the playin, and in both spots, his role was shaky at best. In Washington, he started just 12 out of 49 games as they gave Alexar time to develop. In Sacramento, he was backing up Sabonis, which wasn’t as bad, but considering how the season ended, it obviously wasn’t ideal either. So, now he gets traded again. sure to a much better team. But the reality is he’s a backup again and not just to anyone but to Nicole Joic who plays 37 minutes a night. There’s also a question whether he would see meaningful minutes in the playoffs. Meanwhile, Panatos were offering him something completely different. Potentially a starting role and realistically a star or even superstar status in the Euro League. He might have been or still might be the centerpiece of one of the richest teams in Europe, playing real minutes, probably averaging a double double, and most importantly, competing for championships. I won’t list their entire roster, but let’s just say there are enough NBA names to catch the eye. Kendrick Nun, Jedy Osman, Juancho Gomez, that’s a stack squad for the Euro League. They also added TJ Schwarz, who was an MVP level guy in Europe last season for Paris. So, in JV’s mind, it’s not Denver or bust. It’s a legit crossroad in his basketball career. Stay in the NBA for another year or two as a role player, maybe win the chip with Jokic as a backup, or go back to Europe, be a focal point of the team, and potentially win multiple titles. Before we go any further, if you’re into stories like these, the international drama, behind the scenes moves, and how NBA players think from an overseas perspective, we’ve got a lot of takes and stories you won’t hear on ESPN. Now, back to JV. Now, apparently in this whole story, the most important piece is lifestyle. It’s not just my opinion, but rather something that I’ve been hearing from the first sources. I know this isn’t something you hear in trade analysis videos, but here’s why it matters. Giannis is 33 years old now. He’s been traded four times in six years and that gets old. Just a quick recap. After spending seven years in Toronto, he bounced from Memphis to New Orleans, then to Washington, Sacramento, and now Denver. That’s five cities in 5 years. At the center of all of this is his family. When he got traded to Sacramento, he didn’t even move his family there. They went back to Lithuania so the kids could go to school and learn the language. And now after bouncing around the league, it makes sense that he would want to be somewhere much closer to home, not an ocean away. So, a three-year contract in Athens with no more trade rumors, no more packing up mid-season, and a 3hour flight back to Lithuania. That’s a piece of mind. And I’m not going to lie, Athens is a vibe. 300 sunny days a year, some of the best food in Europe, and a lot of passionate basketball fans. I’m sure that also looked pretty damn appealing compared to flying to, let’s say, Salt Lake City on a Tuesday night. And then there’s the money. That $10.4 million salary in Denver. Well, after taxes and all the agent fees, JV could take home about €4.5 to 5 million. Meanwhile, the penetic cost offer is €4 million per year for 3 years straight. So, it’s not like he would be leaving a lot of money on the table. If anything, it’s actually opposite. Denver could potentially just decline their team option next year. So, all in all, the money he would be getting in Europe is great. Finally, there’s the atmosphere. This past May, Giannis attended the Euro League Final Four in Abu Dhabi. And since I was there, too, and saw him in person, he wasn’t just watching the games, he was actually feeling it. The packed arena, the intensity, the fan singing from start to finish. Afterward, he told the reporters that just being there made him want to return to the Euro League. That says a lot and I wouldn’t even say it represented how great Euro League fans are on a nightly basis because the event wasn’t even happening in Europe. And then a couple of weeks later, he was courtside at the Lithuanian League finals in Villnus. That series was crazy. And this game winner to force the decisive game five is one of the better ones you’ll see all year. Francisco. After the game, Giannis told Lithuanian media he was jealous of the crowd. I really think that the atmosphere stirred something inside of him. I mean, you grow up with that level of passion for basketball, it never leaves you. So, all of this was happening and then behind the scenes, things got wild. On Thursday the 4th of July, the news breaks. Then on Friday the 5th of July, Yiannis actually flew to Athens for a medical checkup. That’s how far along the talks were. And there even were theories how this could actually derail this trade itself or even a chain of trades that followed that trade because you had to wait until July 6th when the trades become official. So naturally, everyone thought, will this Kings Nuggets deal even go through if JV is signing in Greece? But that’s not how it works. And the trade itself didn’t depend on him staying or leaving. Sacramento had their cap needs to sort out. Denver wanted a big man. So, the trade was happening either way. The only question all of us really had was, did Yiannis even report to Denver that he’s flying to Athens, Greece to do a medical checkup? Which brings us to the Nuggets’s response. And credit where credit is due, they acted fast, right after the July 6th deadline. According to Shams, Denver reached out to Valentun’s camp and made it clear they fully intend to keep him and honored the contract. Not only that, but they see him as a valuable piece of their rotation. Later, Brian Winhurst also reported that Nicole Yokic is also happy with the offseason moves. I was told through secondhand that Joic was very pleased with the Nuggets moves. And I know some of you Nuggets fans might be mad even if he stays, but I can tell you something in full confidence. Having followed him since he was 16, 17 years old, JV has always been a pro. This year, I visited him in an away game in Chicago. He looked miserable on the bench as the Wizards were being beat by Chicago by a lot of points, but he showed up and never complained. Throughout the season, he helped mentor the younger guys and played 81 games between the Wizards and the Kings. I think that’s all that needs to be said. Also, let’s not forget he’s never been this close to a potential ring. JV was traded right before Toronto won the title in 2019, and I don’t think that feeling ever left him. His career started with winning multiple gold medals with the Lithuanian youth national team. Then he got to the podium with the senior team a few times, but his last major accomplishment was a decade ago, a silver medal in the 2015 Euro basket. He wants to win and the Nuggets give him the best chance in his career so far to do that. So for now it looks like he’s staying. The reports are saying Denver is planning to keep him while Ponet Cos haven’t announced any signing. Things could still change. Maybe they agree on a buyout later, but I would be very surprised that Denver lets him go after all of this. And personally, I love that he’s staying. I really want to see him become the first Lithuanian ever to win an NBA championship as a player. I think he can be a real differencemaker in Denver even in limited minutes. And if next summer he wants to go back to Europe, that’s great. He can still get that deal next year since I’m sure Ponatos would still throw those millions at him. But what do you think about this whole JV to Denver to Ponos back to Denver saga? Which team do you wish he actually played for? The one in Denver or the one in Athens? Drop your thoughts in the comments below. 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Jonas Valanciunas was just traded to the Nuggets, but days later, he nearly left for Panathinaikos in Greece. Why would a veteran center walk away from a title contender, where he’d be back Nikola Jokic? In this video, I break down what really happened from first sources, why JV seriously considers Europe, and why Denver is still fighting to keep him.

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