Olympic star Guerschon Yabusele seeking NBA return, reportedly has $2.5 million buyout in Real Madrid contract

The 2024 Olympic men’s basketball tournament was a showcase for superstars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama, but it was also a chance for lesser-known players to prove how they compared to the best in the world. One standout? French forward Guerschon Yabusele, who averaged 14 points in the Olympics even managed to throw down a very rare dunk on James. Yabusele was the No. 16 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics, but has not played in the NBA since 2019. Now, he wants another shot at the big time.

“Been waiting for a 2nd chance.. I’m ready,” Yabusele tweeted Sunday. There’s just one small hiccup. Yabusele is under contract with Real Madrid for one more season. He does have a buyout in his contract, but according to Marc Stein, it isn’t cheap: $2.5 million. Ironically, the buyout would have cost only $1 million if it had come before July 15, but Real Madrid seemingly foresaw the possibility of an Olympic boost and planned ahead. NBA teams are only allowed to pay a fixed amount of a player’s international buyout. This season, that figure is $850,000, leaving the remaining $1.65 million to Yabusele.

For most NBA players, a $1.65 million buyout wouldn’t be very costly. Remember, though, that Yabusele played only briefly in the NBA. That’s quite a bit of money to most players in Europe, and that’s before we factor in what sort of contract he could get in the NBA. Even on a one-year, guaranteed minimum contract, he would only earn a bit less than $2.1 million, as the NBA’s minimum salary is based on years of service and Yabusele only has two. If Yabusele doesn’t get a guaranteed offer and is instead invited only to try out at somebody’s training camp, he’d be risking his Real Madrid contract and that buyout payment without assurances that he’d even make an NBA team. That’s obviously a considerable risk.

The reward would be substantial, though, as NBA players earn far more than international players do. If Yabusele could prove that he is capable of contributing to an NBA winner, his long-term earning potential would skyrocket. Is he capable of doing so? The Olympics certainly indicated that he could. He is a big, physical forward that can score inside and has defensive versatility. He is not a high-volume 3-point shooter in Europe, but in his international career as a whole, he has shot 40.7% from deep on 3.3 attempts per game. That may not be an NBA star, but it’s the outline of a useful role player.

Practically every team in the NBA can use another forward, especially if he’s willing to come cheap. Yabusele wants back in the NBA, and even if there are obstacles, he’s worth a look for anyone with minutes available on the wing. There has been no reported interest yet, but the Olympics only just ended and training camps are more than one month away. That’s plenty of time for some team to consider him as an option.