Dimitrios Giannakopoulos, owner of the Panathinaikos Basketball Club, said he tried to bring three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic to Greece.
Giannakopoulos, whose fortune is estimated at between 500 million and 1.9 billion dollars, said on the "Euro Insiders" podcast that he proposed to the Denver Nuggets that they terminate Jokic's contract so the center could move to Athens.
Giannakopoulos said people would say he was joking, but insisted the proposal he made this year, to both Jokic's team and to Jokic himself, was very serious. He said he was turned down and knows Jokic still has a year left on his contract.
According to Spotrac, Jokic is actually still under contract for two more seasons, set to earn $59,033,114 this season and $62,841,702 next season, with the 2027-28 season an option for him.
What Giannakopoulos said
Giannakopoulos said that when he asked, Jokic still had a contract running, which he understood to be his final year. He said he tried to terminate the contract but Jokic's team took only seconds to respond, essentially asking who, Greece, where, what, and dismissing the idea. He said he would wait until next year.
Jokic's career with Denver
Jokic, 31, has spent all 11 of his NBA seasons with the Nuggets, averaging 22.2 points, 11.1 rebounds and 7.5 assists, and led the team to its only NBA title in the 2022-23 season. He has averaged a triple-double in each of the last two seasons, a feat matched only by Oscar Robertson in 1961-62 and Russell Westbrook, who did it four times.
Panathinaikos roster
Panathinaikos finished last season's EuroLeague with a 22-16 record, placing seventh among 20 teams before being eliminated by Valencia Basket in the first round of the playoffs. Former NBA players Jerian Grant, Juancho Hernangomez, Kendrick Nunn and Guerschon Yabusele are on the team's preseason roster.
