There are legitimate questions about what the Portland Trail Blazers will look like on the court in a few years and what parts of their young core will be part of that future, but an athletic scoring wing and an All-Defense forward can fit into any plan.
That’s why Portland locked up two key young players on Sunday with rookie contract extensions. The Blazers and Shaedon Sharpe agreed to a four-year, $90 million extension. a story revealed by ESPN’s Shams Charania. The Trail Blazers also agreed to a four-year, $82 million contract extension with defensive forward Toumani Camara. An agreement also broken by ESPN’s Charania..
This is a fantastic job by the Portland front office: they have locked up their two best wing players for the next five years at a price that will be less than 15% of the salary cap (hat tip to Keith Smith).
Sharpe is an athletic wing who averaged a career-high 18.5 points per game last season while adding 4.5 rebounds per night, but he appears primed for a big season. He needs to improve his efficiency (31.1% on 3-pointers last season and a 55.1 true shooting percentage that was a bit below league average) and on the defensive end, but if he does, he’ll be a contract steal. His athleticism and ability to dunk are not in question.
Many people around the league thought Sharpe’s extension would end up north of $100 million, getting him for $90 million over four years is a win for the Trail Blazers.
Camara’s extension secures a 25-year-old All-Defense player from a year ago who has been improving offensively each season. Camara’s maximum extension would have been four years, $87 million, and that would have been a fair price. Getting him on a contract worth less than $21 million on average is a great deal by Portland’s front office.
Camara was almost one part of the three-team trade that sent Damian Lillard to Milwaukee and brought Deandre Ayton to Portland, but he ended up being one of the best parts for the Blazers. In addition to being an elite defender, Camara is improving on offense and averaged 11.3 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 37.5% from beyond the arc last season.
