Panathinaikos Owner Confirms Rejected Jokic Buyout Bid
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- Dimitrios Giannakopoulos told the 'Euro Insiders' podcast he submitted a 'very serious proposal' this summer to both the Denver Nuggets and Jokic to buy out the final season of Jokic's contract, and the Nuggets rejected it within seconds — quoting them as responding: 'Who? Greece? Where? What? Bye.'
- Nikola Jokic has two seasons and $121.8 million remaining on his current deal, but the second year is a player option, putting him on track for unrestricted free agency next summer.
- Jokic became eligible June 14 to sign a four-year, $278 million max extension but has declined to commit, saying his 'idea and desire' is to stay in Denver for the rest of his career but that he wants to wait for financial reasons.
- Jokic will become eligible in July 2027 to sign a five-year, $359.5 million extension with the Nuggets — what ESPN's Bobby Marks projects would be the largest contract in NBA history.
- Giannakopoulos said he intends to pursue Jokic again once he is a free agent and pointed podcast hosts to Jokic's agent, Misko Raznatovic, to verify the proposal was real.
- Giannakopoulos tried to lure veteran center Jonas Valanciunas from the Nuggets last summer, creating confusion before Valanciunas played out the season in Denver and then left this summer for Lithuanian EuroLeague club Zalgiris Kaunas.
- The Nuggets added veteran center Marvin Bagley III and retained reserve wing Spencer Jones by matching a two-year, $12 million offer sheet from the Oklahoma City Thunder, while navigating restricted free agency talks with Peyton Watson.
Why it matters: The Greek offer is essentially theater — Giannakopoulos was dismissed in seconds, and Jokic himself publicly says he wants to stay in Denver — but the gambit puts a spotlight on the real stakes: Jokic's looming free agency next summer and the potential $359.5 million supermax extension waiting in July 2027, which would reset the market for the league's best player.
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