By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
Nikola Mirotic has decided to sign with Barcelona according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. The player will thus return to EuroLeague where he previously played from 2008 to 2014 with Real Madrid. His new team’s archrival club.
Earlier on Saturday (29/6), a report emerged mentioning Barcelona making a run to sign Mirotic and the player being positive about joining the club. However, this is still a rather surprising turn of events since, as Charania reports, Mirotic, an unrestricted free agent, could get a contract up to 50 million if he decided to stay in the NBA. By signing with Barcelona, the 28-year-old Spanish-Montenegrin forward will settle for much less money than what an NBA deal could bring him.
Actually, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweeted that the Utah Jazz were ready to pen a three-year, 45 million deal with Mirotic. Yet the player wanted to make a change in his life by returning to Europe.
The Dallas Mavericks had also been reported to consider Mirotic ahead of the NBA free agency. He becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1st after completing the season with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Now, Mirotic will get back in Europe and join Barcelona, a EuroLeague contender. The Blaugrana, once a EuroLeague Final Four staple, haven’t been in the Top 4 of the competition since 2014. That was also the last season Mirotic played in Europe before signing with the Chicago Bulls.
Mirotic finished the 2018-2019 season by making the Eastern Conference Finals with Milwaukee. He was traded to the Bucks by the New Orleans Pelicans in February.