The Jonas Valanciunas trade seemed to finally be the answer to the non-Jokic minutes and backup center problem that has plagued the Denver Nuggets for the better part of a decade. After reports of him being offered a multi-year contract by Greek franchise Panathinaikos, there was confusion as to whether he would actually suit up next in Denver or all the way across the Atlantic in Greece.
The Lithuanian center had yet to speak on the situation after his agent reportedly had a miscommunication with the Nuggets front office. On Tuesday, he broke his silence as a panelist at the B8 Basketball Summit in Lithuania.
“You can say anything. A lot has already been said, all kind of thoughts. The bubble burst, everyone shared what everyone thinks. We’ll only find out when the first game is played. Everything will be clear,” Valanciunas said.
Pretty cryptic, as the 7-footer didn’t share a whole lot.
“When the trade is finalized, we’ll come up with a plan. [The Nuggets] will express their wishes, how they think, how they see it … medical, other details. That will depend on the team,” he said.
The report also stated that Valanciunas “has a verbal agreement” with Panathinaikos despite being under contract in the NBA for the next two seasons. Now that the Nuggets trade for Cam Johnson has been finalized, the Valanciunas trade is next up on the docket with the cap space now available. The last words that came from Denver’s side of the argument is that they ‘fully intend’ for the center they just traded for to be in the blue and gold this season in Denver, and they have full control over that.
To the pleasure of Nuggets fans, he did say that he will be making his way to Denver.
“Once the trade is finalized, we’ll put together the plan for the trip to Denver. The team will outline how they see the situation, medicals, and all the details. That part is up to the them,” he revealed.
He was still noncommittal in who he would play for in the fall, but the fact that he’s not just staying overseas and playing hard to get should provide a bit of hope for Nuggets Nation that he will be the guy to give some relief to Jokic next season.
The only way that Valanciunas can make it to Panathinaikos is for the Nuggets to buy out his contract and then for him to get a letter of clearance from FIBA. With these cryptic messages, could the big man be hinting at the fact that he doesn’t want to play for Denver? Or is he just trying to downplay the situation that now has Nuggets fans arguing with Panathinaikos fans on X?
