Bamba suspends European negotiations and persists in pursuing her dreams in the NBA. Can the dream come true at the end of the offseason?

Recently, Greek media Baseline Insiders quoted sources as saying that former NBA player Mohamed Bamba has suspended negotiations with Greek powerhouse Olympiacos. With European teams extending their olive branches, the talented center, who was once highly anticipated, is still stubbornly pursuing the opportunity to return to the NBA, and his persistence makes his final destination full of suspense.

For Bamba, the past 2024-25 season has been a career low. He has played in two teams, the Clippers and Pelicans, and has only played in 32 regular season games in total. His average data is 4.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.0 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 46.4%, and his three-point shooting percentage has dropped to 27.8%.

Such performance is seriously inconsistent with his talent - as a top static talent owner born in 1998, 2m 13 and 2m 39, he was once regarded as a potential stock that could change the team's interior landscape, but now he has become a marginal player in the league.

In March this year, Bamba's NBA journey suffered another heavy blow. After his 10-day short contract for the Pelicans expired, he failed to receive a contract renewal and officially became a full free agent. According to the NBA's short contract salary calculation rules, this 10-day contract brought him about $150,000 in income, but it also forced him to face the embarrassing situation of "no ball to play".

Previously, he had a brief scandal with the Serbian Belgrade guerrillas, but the two sides had never reached a signing contract. Now the negotiations with Olympiacos have been temporarily suspended, which is behind him reluctance to leave the NBA arena.

Looking back at Bamba's NBA career, it is full of gaps between "talent and reality". In 2018, he entered the league as the No. 6 pick in the first round, showing some potential in his first season, averaging 6.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game.

But in the following years, his progress was far less than expected: the shortcomings of the ball players were gradually exposed, and the offensive end preferred to make three-pointers from the outside (1.8 of the 3.7 shots per game in the Clippers last season were averaging 3.7 shots from the three-point line), wasting the advantage of top wingspan; although he could contribute blocks on the defensive end, he was easily shaken away by his opponent's fake moves, and the quality of the pick-and-roll was difficult to meet the team's needs.

Despite the bleak status quo, Bamba has not given up. Previously, domestic media reported that he had received pre-tax offers from CBA clubs of over $3 million - an amount accounting for 70% of the CBA single-team foreign aid salary cap ($4.25 million), which is a sky-high price.

But even so, he still prioritizes NBA opportunities, even if it's just an unsecured contract. As a giant in the Greek basketball league, Olympiacos can provide a stable playing time and competitive platform, but in Bamba's heart, the NBA's dream is obviously more important.

NBA offseason is coming to an end, and the lineups of each team are gradually taking shape, leaving Bamba with fewer and fewer opportunities.