Toronto Raptors forward Terrence Ross has agreed to a three-year, nearly $33 million contract extension, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
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.Toronto's Terrence Ross (R) drives past Boston's Evan Turner on Friday. (AP)
Toronto's Terrence Ross (R) drives past Boston's Evan Turner on Friday. (AP)
The Raptors avoid letting Ross become a free agent next summer when the league salary cap makes a steep rise. Toronto could've been forced to match a more expensive offer sheet. The extension begins in the 2016-17 season.
Ross, 24, is a skilled wing player whom Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri believes is starting to find the consistency to become a core player for Toronto. He started 61 games last season and averaged 9.8 points, and had his best game of this season Friday with 21 points in a victory over the Boston Celtics.
So far this season, Ross has played a reserve role behind Raptors All-Star forward DeMar DeRozan and DeMarre Carroll. Derozan will be an unrestricted free agent in 2016. Ross is the second Raptor to sign a rookie extension before the deadline, joining center Jonas Valanciunas, who signed a four-year, $64 million extension this summer.
Ross was the eighth overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft out of the University of Washington.