Vlatko Cancar has announced that he will be heading to Italy to join Olimpia Milano, confirming the move during an appearance on DNVR Sports’ Denver Nuggets podcast on Thursday.
Earlier reports this week suggested Cancar was on track to sign a two-year contract with the EuroLeague side. The Slovenian forward has now confirmed that he will indeed be making the move as a free agent.
“After the season and before the free agency, I was talking with my agent, and then I was asking, ‘What’s going on with Denver?’” Cancar shared during the podcast, with quotes also picked up by Eurohoops. “Unfortunately, they came out with the news where it was kind of like a remodel. … They want to say thank you for everything that you did, but they’re trying to move on now and bring some new energy, bring some new players. And then I accepted it. I said OK, I’m glad I was part of the team for six years. For me, it was OK.”
While Cancar never locked down a consistent rotation role during his time in Denver, he did see his most active season in 2022–23, when he averaged 14.8 minutes per game in 60 regular season appearances. However, his role in the playoffs was limited, making only five appearances during the Nuggets’ championship run, all in low-leverage situations.
His involvement dropped off over the past two seasons due to serious knee injuries. Cancar suffered an ACL tear in August 2023 during a FIBA World Cup warmup match and underwent another procedure on the same knee in December 2024. In total, he featured in just 13 games over the last two seasons for Denver. Now 28, he says he’s eager to turn the page and take on a more central role with his new team in Italy.
“Milano came straight away and they were eager to bring me in,” Cancar said. “And then, obviously, I got that feeling of being wanted and being important.”
Selected 49th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Cancar joined the Nuggets in 2019. Over six seasons and 143 regular season games, he averaged 3.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in just under 11 minutes per game. He was also known for his strong friendship with Denver’s star center Nikola Jokic.
