Toronto Raptors agree to $40 million four year contract extension with DeMar DeRozan – NBA News
For a franchise that has not seen much success in the NBA over the past few seasons, the Toronto Raptors team and front office are a dedicated and determined bunch of people. They are determined to take the franchise into the future
and make them solid playoff contenders for the years to come. And they showed that had the plan, resources and will to do so when they acquired Kyle Lowry and Landry Fields in the offseason. Then they had Jonas Valanciunas joining them in the 2012-13 season
and even made an attempt to acquire Steve Nash. And the Raptors have once again shown that they are thinking about the future by reaching an agreement with DeMar DeRozan over a four year contract extension worth $40 million.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports has reported that the Raptors have agreed on a four year $40 million extension with DeRozan, their number 9 pick from the 2009 NBA Draft. DeRozan is currently in the final year of his rookie
contract, and would have become a free agent this coming summer had the Raptors not signed him on for an extension. The deal also came hours before the deadline for finalizing extensions. Many are saying that $10 million a year for a player of DeRozan’s calibre
might be a bit steep, but the Raptors want him in the team core they are developing and did not want to take the risk of him going into free agency.
DeRozan averaged 16.7 points and 3.3 rebounds for the Raptors last season, shooting 42.2 percent overall from the field and 26 percent from three point range. He is an athletic player with the ability to run fast breaks and score
in transition, as well as scoring while penetrating into the paint. His weakness is long distance jumpers, which he can improve over the course of his career as he is only three seasons old in the NBA.
With the addition of DeRozan for the long term in the Raptors roster, they now have a very promising core assembled that can take them into the future. Kyle Lowry is a certified top guard in the league and Landry Fields has had
some good seasons as well. Valanciunas looked impressive in the season opener for the Raptors and DeRozan gives the roster the athleticism it needs against bigger teams. The Raptors definitely have something going over there in Toronto.
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