Former Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas might be heading to Europe for next season.
Days after Valanciunas landed with the Denver Nuggets in a deal that sent Dario Saric to the Sacramento Kings, a new report has now surfaced that suggests Valanciunas is considering an offer to join Panathinaikos Athens in Greece.
Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews first reported the news and then Marc Stein later confirmed the report suggesting a buyout could happen to make the move possible.
The Nuggets were hoping Valanciunas was going to provide a stable force behind Nikola Jokic in the rotation. The Nuggets have lacked depth behind the three-time MVP Jokic.
The deal that brought Valanciunas to Denver cannot become official until Sunday so now there is uncertainly around the 33-year-old’s future in the NBA.
Valanciunas played in 81 games last season, splitting time between the Washington Wizards and Sacramento Kings. He averaged 10.4 points and 7.7 rebounds.
Valanciunas was drafted fifth overall by the Raptors in 2011. He spent seven seasons with Toronto, averaging 11.8 points and 8.4 rebounds before he was traded to the Memphis Grizzles in 2019 in the deal that brought Marc Gasol to Toronto.
Masai Ujiri opens up about his departure from Raptors
Masai Ujiri doesn’t seem to hold anything against the Toronto Raptors following his departure.
He appeared on Good Morning America on Thursday, and he was in good spirits. He didn’t show any signs of being frustrated or upset with the Raptors decision to move on from him.
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