Panathinaikos owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos has confirmed one of European basketball's most eyebrow-raising rumours: that he tried, this year, to sign Nikola Jokic away from the Denver Nuggets.
Appearing on the Euro Insiders podcast, Giannakopoulos said he submitted what he called "a very serious offer" aimed at buying out the final year of Jokic's contract, sending it to both the three-time NBA MVP and the Nuggets organisation.
"I sent a very serious offer this season, both to the player and to his club, and received an immediate rejection," Giannakopoulos said, according to the podcast and Greek outlets including Ta Nea and SDNA who covered the same interview.
The Panathinaikos owner painted the response as dismissive in the extreme, suggesting the Nuggets barely entertained the idea given Jokic's commitments in the United States. ESPN and Basketnews.com, citing the same podcast appearance, reported that Giannakopoulos described the reply to his approach on buying out the contract as essentially "Who? Greece? Where? Goodbye."
Jokic is tied to Denver for two more seasons worth a combined $121.8 million, but the second of those is a player option — meaning the Serbian centre could opt out and enter unrestricted free agency next summer if he chooses.
That is the opening Giannakopoulos is banking on. "He remains a dream of mine, whom I haven't signed yet, but I will sign next year," he said, vowing to renew his pursuit once Jokic's contract situation opens up.
It is not the first time the Panathinaikos owner has spoken boldly about landing NBA-calibre talent for the Greek champions, and he used the same podcast appearance to heap praise on retired Serbian playmaker Milos Teodosic, calling him "the smartest person ever to play basketball" behind only club legend Dimitris Diamantidis.
Whether an actual pursuit of Jokic is realistic remains doubtful — the reigning MVP-calibre force is widely expected to sign the richest contract in NBA history to stay with Denver — but the episode underlines the ambition Giannakopoulos has attached to Panathinaikos since taking over the club from his father and uncle.
