Nikola Mirotic: A couple of surprising possibilities are on the table
Weeks go by, and Nikola Mirotic—a Spanish national born in Montenegro who also played for Olimpia Milano (winning one Scudetto and one Italian Super Cup between 2023 and 2025)—remains without a team. A situation that, in and of itself, wouldn’t be particularly surprising for a 35-year-old player coming off a season marred by plantar fasciitis, but which, in his case, must be evaluated in light of another significant detail: after a career spent entirely at the highest levels, Mirotic faces a real risk of falling out of the EuroLeague circuit.
This prospect is surprising given his resume, which also includes five years in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelicans, and Milwaukee Bucks between 2014 and 2019: Mirotic would like to remain on Europe’s biggest stage, but the market isn’t providing the answers he’d hoped for. His difficult season in Monte Carlo—marked by minimal playing time and declining stats (averaging 11 points and 4.3 rebounds)—has raised doubts about his physical condition. And as EuroLeague clubs finalize their rosters, his options are dwindling.
In this context, however, an unexpected possibility has emerged: Unicaja Málaga. According to ‘Diario Sur,’ the Andalusian club is closely monitoring the situation, as it is looking for a top-tier power forward to complete its roster. Furthermore, Málaga would be a desirable destination for Mirotic from a personal standpoint, as it would allow him to return to the country where he has lived since 2005 and for which he has held a passport since 2010.
The point is that Unicaja cannot offer him the EuroLeague. Mirotic could find himself in the Basketball Champions League, a competition that is certainly important—one that Málaga has won twice, among other things—but which falls short of the high-profile context created by EuroLeague Basketball and a competition in which the 1991-born player was named MVP not too long ago, in the 2021–2022 season while playing for Barcelona.
There is actually another offer on the table, from the Turkish club Bahcesehir: the Istanbul-based club wants him as its star in the EuroCup, the second-tier competition under the umbrella of EuroLeague Basketball, which admits the tournament’s winner into the EuroLeague each year. However, the distance from Spain and the prospect of having to wait at least another twelve months (and first having to win the cup) to return to the EuroLeague should lead him to say “no,” barring any major surprises.
