Heartbreaking lost for Sasha. With that being said, it’s now or never for Sasha.
1. He’s turning 28-years-old in August. He’s not getting younger and if he decides to wait out another year, he’ll be a 29 y/o rookie who’s never stepped on an NBA floor
2. The Kings have sent over just about every team official to Greece. They’ve invested a lot of time to show Sasha that they’re serious about him. If he doesn’t come over this season, I think they cut the relationship loose
3. Depending on which team the Kings trade his rights to, there’s a chance that he might not be able to get the same role and playing time as he would with the Kings. There’s uncertainty on his future because he’s not a free agent
Look at the way Teodosic’s career played out. He was a free agent, but teams kept trying to convince him to come over and he finally decided to at age 30, had a couple minor injuries, and was out of the league by age 32. He later admitted during interviews that he came to the NBA too late.
In his recent interview with RTS’s Slobodan Sarenac, he admitted that it might have been too late for him and shared his opinion on the ideal years to make the transition to the NBA, taking the Kings’ Bogdan Bogdanovic as a prime example: “I think it’s individual. In any case, not too late as I did. I think I came to the US too late. Years with which Bogdan came are ideal. Some 24, 25 when you already did something in Europe, when you’ve matured and arrived with self-confidence which is very important. I think those are the ideal years”, he said.
Nonetheless, Teodosic doesn’t regret anything. In fact, that was one of the reasons he decided on the NBA in the first place: “I didn’t want to end my career and regret later on, to feel sorry that I didn’t come and see how it is. How everything functions here, the way they worked and the way basketball is played. It is completely different than Europe, the way basketball is played. One great experience for me.”
Ball is in Sasha’s court. 1 year might not seem like a big deal, but I think it’d be the end for Sasha-Kings. There’s no guarantee he wins a ring next year. If he doesn’t, does this mean he stays for another year? Kings can’t go on operating with that kind of uncertainty when it seems like they’re counting on him to be an impact player if he comes over.