OG is staying!
On Monday, before the NBA’s 6pm deadline for rookie-scale contract extensions, OG Anunoby and the Toronto Raptors were able to come to an agreement on a four-year, $72 million extension to keep him in Toronto for the foreseeable future.
It’s nice to see OG get paid, especially after his improvement in recent years, and the number might actually come as a bit of a shock to Raptors fans after some of the other contracts signed would’ve seemed to indicate a higher market for Anunoby.
For example, a popular reference has been the extension that Jaylen Brown signed with the Boston Celtics last year for four years, $90 million. Brown took a leap last season, but at the time of signing the contract, he was more or less considered in a similar regard to Anunoby.
Even some of the other contracts signed on Monday make Anunoby’s extension appear to be a deal:
- Jonathan Isaac: Four years, $80 million with the Orlando Magic
- Derrick White: Four years, $73 million with the San Antonio Spurs
- Luke Kennard: Four years, $64 million with the Los Angeles Clippers
- Markelle Fultz: Three years, $50 million with the Orlando Magic
Isaac was the first player to sign on Monday, and while he’s probably regarded by most as an even better defender than OG, he’s also currently rehabbing from a torn ACL with a checkered injury history behind him, so his $80 million number was thought to set the market for Anunoby.
From the rest of Anunoby’s 2017 draft class, Kyle Kuzma signed a three-year, $30 million extension with the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday. Jayson Tatum, Bam Adebayo, Donovan Mitchell and De’Aaron Fox each signed maximum contract extensions with their respective teams earlier in free agency.
