Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) looks on against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second half during game six of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs
Nikola Jokic has spent the last decade making NBA defenses look like they were assembled five minutes before tipoff, so naturally a billionaire in Greece decided the next logical step was trying to purchase him from the Denver Nuggets.
Panathinaikos owner Dimitrios Giannakopoulos says he made a serious attempt to buy out the final year of Jokic’s contract and bring the three-time MVP to Athens, only to receive a rejection so fast it basically qualified as a fast break.
The Jokic pitch was not presented as a joke. Giannakopoulos said he approached both Denver and Jokic’s side, and the response from the NBA camp was essentially, “Greece? Absolutely not,” before he could finish arranging the welcome basket.
Panathinaikos Tried To Shop In The NBA’s Most Expensive Aisle
Giannakopoulos revealed the attempt during the Euro Insiders podcast, saying he made a serious proposal and tried to buy out what he believed was the final year of Jokic’s Denver deal.
There is an important contract wrinkle.
Jokic technically has two seasons remaining. He is scheduled to make $59,033,114 in 2026-27 and has a $62,841,702 player option for 2027-28, leaving $121,874,816 on the deal if he exercises that option.
That is not exactly the type of contract a European club normally buys out with money found beneath the couch cushions.
Giannakopoulos said the idea was dismissed within seconds.
“They didn’t even, I mean, it took a few seconds to say, ‘Who? Greece? Where? What? Bye,’” he said.
That quote might be the funniest part of the entire story. Panathinaikos did not get a week of negotiations, a counteroffer or even the basketball equivalent of “we’ll circle back.” It sounds like Denver heard “Nikola Jokic” and “Greece” in the same sentence and immediately checked whether the call was a prank.
Still, Giannakopoulos does not appear ready to surrender.
“Let’s wait until next year,” he said.
The 2027 Part Is Where This Gets Slightly Less Impossible
Jokic can become a free agent in 2027 if he declines his player option, which is why Giannakopoulos can at least pretend there is a door worth knocking on next summer. The Nuggets star has also delayed signing another extension, although he has publicly said he wants to spend his entire career in Denver.
That makes Panathinaikos’ chances somewhere between “extremely unlikely” and “start teaching the Parthenon to play center.”
But the ambition says plenty about where elite European basketball sees itself.
Panathinaikos is not some random club sending Jokic a direct message. It is one of Europe’s biggest basketball brands, has won seven EuroLeague championships and already employs former NBA players including Kendrick Nunn, Juancho Hernangomez and Guerschon Yabusele.
There is still a Grand Canyon between signing productive NBA veterans and convincing the best player on Earth to leave the league while he remains at the height of his powers.
Jokic has won three MVP awards, led Denver to the 2023 championship and averaged a triple-double in each of the last two seasons. NBA teams spend years tanking, trading and praying to acquire somebody like him.
Panathinaikos apparently skipped those steps and asked whether Denver accepted cash.
The answer was no.
Giannakopoulos says he may ask again in 2027.
You have to respect the confidence.
If nothing else, Greece now has the most ambitious recruiting vision board in basketball.