Steven Adams just got a whole lot richer.
Adams and the Oklahoma City Thunder agreed to a four-year, $100 million maximum extension today, the deadline to do so.
Oklahoma City and center Steven Adams are finalizing a four-year, $100M extension, league sources tell @TheVertical.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) October 31, 2016
There has been some hesitancy from teams to sign players on rookie deals to extensions with the unknown that lies ahead. There reportedly will be changes to restricted free agency and possibly increased cap holds in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, which is expected to be all worked out in the coming weeks.
Uncertainty may also push teams to go the other direction and make sure they can lock up players long-term before any changes that come into effect possibly hinder them. That may have contributed to the Thunder’s thinking in this extension, but either way, locking Adams up was an obvious priority for the franchise.
Adams had a sort of coming out party during the playoffs this past year, posting averages of 10.1 points and 9.5 rebounds on 61.3 percent shooting. Through three games this season, Adams appears to be picking up where he left off averaging 13.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.
After Kevin Durant’s departure this past summer, the future for the Thunder became more uncertain than ever has been. Russell Westbrook’s extension provided the fans some resolve and now Adams’ is doing more of the same.
Had Adams waited until next summer, he could have signed a 5-year, $136 million max deal, based on next year’s projected $103 million cap.
The Thunder (3-0) play next on the road vs. the Los Angeles Clippers Wednesday and then play at the Warriors on Thursday.
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