Recruitment, budget, the Mike James case... What will AS Monaco basketball look like next season?

No third title for Monaco... Tuesday evening in Paris, the little point guard TJ Shorts and the referees decided otherwise. The Roca Team returned from the capital yesterday morning with empty suitcases. Three-time finalists (Euroleague, championship, Leaders Cup) and no trophy to put in the display case. A bitter taste upon arrival...

"Of course we're disappointed, but at the same time we're proud of the players' dedication, who fought with a huge heart until the end," commented general manager Oleksiy Yefimov. Coming back from nowhere in this final, from 0-2 to 2-2, deprived of James and Theis, then of Blossomgame at the start of game 5, gone from -17 to +9 in the epilogue, the Roca Team seemed to be reborn each time from nothing. There were five minutes too many. A few absurd whistles, a show from MVP TJ Shorts. The season has come to an end. It was long and exciting, despite everything.

The Mike James Case

Injured on his way back from the Final Four in Abu Dhabi, then suspended by his club due to a fight that occurred in a bar-restaurant in Monaco, then returned to the United States before the start of the final, the star point guard of the Roca Team gave an update on Tuesday, the day of Game 5 of the finals. The news came via a video he shared on his Instagram account, where we see MJ calmly shooting in a New York gym with his friend and NBA star, Kevin Durant...

It's not certain that the Monegasque "establishment" appreciated the timing of the sequence, a few hours before his teammates delivered a fierce battle against Paris Basket.

MJ has two years left on his contract at the Rock, worth nearly €6 million. Will Mike James still be a Monaco player when the season begins, and under what conditions? The situation remains unclear. According to rumors, there are still a lot of tensions to iron out. Talks are expected to begin today.

The core group will remain, budget announced to be increased

A reassuring sign for the upcoming campaigns: according to our sources, the core of the Roca Team, under contract (Elie Okobo, Matthew Strazel, Alpha Diallo, Jaron Blossomgame, Terry Tarpey, Jordan Loyd) will still be wearing the Monaco jersey at the start of the school year.

The club's budget (32 million euros this season) is announced as increasing "by around 10%" by the GM, a prospect which runs counter to the club's alleged financial difficulties.

The subject of tensions with the League, ASM had succeeded, through a legal challenge, in having the "luxury tax" (a tax on high-earning salaries invented by the League) reduced from €2.5 million to around €300,000. But the LNB appears determined to return to the fray on this issue.

Kevarrius Hayes (Paris) on the verge of signing

In terms of arrivals, according to our information, ASM is about to sign Paris Basket center Kevarrius Hayes (2.05m, 28 years old), a Florida Gators-trained player. The Live Oak native displays great energy in the paint. The arrival of Isaïa Cordinier, announced by an Italian media outlet, was a fake. Other reinforcements are, however, in the pipeline. While former Barça star Nikola Mirotic seemed very close to the Rock for a moment, the prospect has apparently gone cold. Nadir Hifi, who is very popular with Omar Sy, the capital club's new shareholder, is expected to stay in Paris. Regarding departures, players who were little or not used at the end of the season (Vitto Brown, Donatas Motiejunas, Georgios Papagiannis) will not be retained. Neither will Nick Calathes, but their contractual situations differ. Mam Jaiteh, whose contract is coming to an end, is said to have offers on the table that cannot be refused, particularly from Dubai.