While the US got a basketball player that can't stop being high for too long to not risk a foriegn prison.
Apparently, the US also wanted an ex-marine but looks like he was left to rot for the virtue signal. I doubt Viktor's contacts are still active after nearly a decade but it's more showing that being loyal to Russia means they will get you back eventually is good PR for them.
Edit: Thought I'd add this on as credit to MagnumRabbits who brought up something that I overlooked. What are the two things Russia is having issues with:
Weapons supply
Sanctions and embargoes
This man, just this man if he still has his golden touch, could negate a lot of the impact for BOTH of these issues, Biden just traded Russia's Oppenheimer for a knock-off LeBron James.
From what I gathered he's ethnic Ukrainian but this was still when the USSR was a thing and they loved to move people around so they had no real community and their only connection was to the state.
Good movie, it also has a scene in it that gives every AK owner a hardon
Depends on how much mud
Even the opening credits scene is fantastic
He's a Russian born in Soviet Tajikistan.
The film character has even an entirely different name and never even tried to be a biopic, instead was just inspired by an archetype that Bout personified (it's not like he was the only one) and by some stories about his own exploits.