Jonas Valanciunas Waived by Nuggets, Next Landing Spot Revealed
JUST IN: The Denver Nuggets are waiving center Jonas Valanciunas, league sources told @hoopshype. He had a fully guaranteed $10 million decision today. Denver will now owe Valanciunas $2 million for the 2026-27 season. He’s averaged 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds in 14 NBA seasons. pic.twitter.com/5KdGxgQL6N
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 8, 2026
He'll still be paid $2 million by the Nuggets from a guarantee in the final year of his contract.
The NBA champion New York Knicks and the LA Lakers have been linked to Valanciunas as a backup center. But both of those teams have filled their needs in the past few days; the Knicks added Andre Drummond, and the Lakers are going with Kevon Looney. It's likely that neither team would still hold interest in signing JV.
He has been rumored to be interested in heading overseas to continue his career. In fact, last summer, he strongly considered a lucrative three-year offer from the Greek club Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens but ultimately committed to honoring his contract with the Nuggets. This time, he might leave North America for real. He apparently has multiple offers on the table in Europe.
For his career, the Big Lithuanian has averaged 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds in 14 NBA seasons.
