“Greek Freak” Yannis Adetokunbo (Milwaukee Bucks) has expressed interest in playing in the Saudi Arabian Professional Basketball League.
TMZ reported on Tuesday (Nov. 22) that Adetokunle laughed at the possibility of playing in the Saudi Basketball League, saying, “Absolutely. If the NBA and the Saudi Basketball League can make a trade, I’ll be there,” he said.
It sounds a bit like a joke, but it could mean a trip to Saudi Arabia if the NBA and the Saudi league agree on trade terms.
Adetokunbo signed a five-year, $228 million supermax extension with Milwaukee in 2020.
But after recently seeing a Saudi Arabian soccer club offer Kylian Mbappe a staggering $776 million for a single season, he said, “If I didn’t play basketball, I would play soccer.” He jokingly added, “I’d sign him.
He jokingly added: “Sign me too. I look like Mbappe,” he joked.
The club responded by telling Adetokunbo, “Your jersey is ready.”
Saudi soccer clubs have 안전놀이터 mobilized vast amounts of money to sign global stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and Neymar. Ronaldo reportedly earns nearly $200 million a year.
LeBron James also expressed interest in Mbappe’s salary on social media.
It’s unlikely that Adetokunbo and James will be playing in the Saudi league anytime soon.
However, there’s no doubt that, like soccer, basketball is likely to see Saudi Arabia pouring “petrodollars” into the sport at some point.