Nikola Milutinov is now expected to stay with Olympiacos after a late push from Piraeus changed the course of his free agency. Meanwhile, Milan is expected to withdraw from the race, BasketNews sources confirm.
After a dramatic shift in the market, Nikola Milutinov is now expected to remain with Olympiacos Piraeus, BasketNews sources confirm.
Milutinov had been in advanced talks with EA7 Emporio Armani Milan and was close to making the move, but a late push from Olympiacos, following the conclusion of the Greek League finals, convinced the Serbian center to stay in Piraeus.
According to BasketNews sources, Milutinov had previously rejected an approach from Panathinaikos while he was leaning toward signing with Milan, where talks had reached a final stage.
Nikola Milutinov
| Team: |
Olympiacos Piraeus |
| Position: | C |
| Age: | 30 |
| Height: | 212 cm |
| Weight: | 100 kg |
| Birth place: | Novi Sad, Serbia |
However, Panathinaikos made a surprise 3-year, €9 million offer on Tuesday—an aggressive move that may have triggered urgency within the Olympiacos camp to avoid losing their longtime center, especially to their archrival.
In response, Olympiacos submitted a significantly improved final offer that proved too persuasive, prompting Milutinov to leave the Milan deal and stay in Piraeus.
BasketNews sources confirm that Milan is not expected to increase their original offer and is anticipated to withdraw from the race.
Multiple Greek media outlets report that Milutinov's new deal with Olympiacos is expected to be worth between €6.5 million (EuroHoops) and almost €7 million (Sport24, Gazzetta) over the course of a 2+1 agreement—significantly more than Milan's offer.
For comparison, his previous salary in Piraeus was around €1.7-1.8 million per season.
“We did our best. Milutinov is a very good athlete. We knew it would be difficult, and that’s why we put so much money on the table,” Panathinaikos president Dimitris Giannakopoulos shared in an Instagram story after Milutinov rejected their final offer.
Milutinov played a pivotal role in Olympiacos' Greek League title run, especially after Moustapha Fall suffered a season-ending injury during Game 3 of the Finals.
From Game 3 onward, Milutinov took over frontline duties and averaged 14 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and a 24 efficiency rating per game, helping Olympiacos to back-to-back wins and secure the championship.
Over 29 EuroLeague 2024-25 season games, Milutinov averaged 8.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocked shots per game, while shooting 58.2% from the field and 83.7% from the free-throw line in less than 20 minutes.
His Performance Index Rating (PIR) stood at 14.5, listing him among the top 30 players in the EuroLeague.
No other EuroLeague player averaged at least a 12.0 PIR in fewer than 20 minutes per game.
Since the EuroLeague adopted its current round-robin format in 2016–17, Milutinov ranks third in total rebounds and second in offensive boards across the competition.
Milutinov is the only EuroLeague player to record a 20-rebound game in the past 14 years.
According to BBallytics, Olympiacos improved its offensive rebounding rate by 5.6% with Milutinov on the floor last season, highlighting his value as one of the top second-chance creators in Europe.
 | Olympiacos Piraeus | |
| Position | Player | Status |
| PG | Keenan Evans | Signed until 2025 +2 |
| PG | Thomas Walkup | Signed until 2025 + 1 + 1 |
| PG/SG | Naz Mitrou-Long | Signed until 2025 |
| PG/SG | Luca Vildoza | Signed until 2026 |
| SG/PG | Saben Lee | Signed until 2026 +1 |
| SG | Evan Fournier | Signed until 2026 |
| SG | Giannoulis Larentzakis | Signed until 2026 |
| SG | Tyler Dorsey | Signed until 2026 |
| SG/SF | Shaquielle McKissic | Signed until 2025 |
| SF | Kostas Papanikolaou | Signed until 2025 +1 |
| PF | Alec Peters | Signed until 2026 |
| PF | Sasha Vezenkov | Signed until 2029 |
| PF/C | Filip Petrusev (on loan) | Signed until 2026 |
| C | Moses Wright | Signed until 2025 |
| C | Moustapha Fall | Signed until 2027 |
| C | Nikola Milutinov | Signed until 2025 |
| Coach | Georgios Bartzokas (signed until 2026) | |
| Expiring contracts | Shaquielle McKissic, Nikola Milutinov, Moses Wright, Nigel Williams-Goss | |
| Rumored to leave | Moses Wright, Luca Vildoza, Nigel Williams-Goss, Naz Mitrou-Long | |
| Interested | Nick Weiler-Babb, Tyson Ward | |
More Olympiacos transfer news:
- Olympiacos' final push for Milutinov has Milan expected to step aside
- At least five Olympiacos players reportedly leaving, two remain undecided
- Report reveals whether Georgios Bartzokas stays at Olympiacos
- Last 10 crucial minutes: How Olympiacos landed Saben Lee at the buzzer?
