Jonas Valanciunas: In It For The Long Haul

Masai Ujiri has done it again. Whether you’re a fan of Jonas Valanciunas or not, you have to admit that a four-year, $64 million extension is a great deal considering the fight the Toronto Raptors would have had to put up to keep him in the near future.

A max deal starting out at an estimated $21 million will be available next summer, and Valanciunas could’ve held out for that if he really wanted to. It’s not preposterous to imagine him getting such a contract.

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Despite the evolving ideology that big men aren’t really needed anymore in today’s league, capable ones (centers especially) are sought after for specific skills. Make no mistake, big men are still highly valued, even though it’s now often for more limited skill sets.

So long as you can protect the rim? Money. Can you rebound like a pogo stick? Money. Are you capable of scoring around the rim and shooting? Money. Are you a young buck full of potential who has shown glimpses of breaking out? Money.

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Valanciunas, of course, falls into that last category by default. As mentioned many times, the rising cap is going to mean that any center worth his salt who can provide a significant impact to a team is going to get a max deal. Heck, just look at Tristan Thompson and his stalemate with the Cleveland Cavaliers or DeAndre Jordan and the tug-of-war over his services earlier this summer.

And while Jonas is indeed a center who has shown a lot of promise and is undoubtedly loaded with potential, the man has a jump shot (that he needs to become more confident in), can rebound very well when engaged and is a decent rim protector.

Some may point to the Raptors’ poor defensive rating last season and blame Jonas, but that’s not altogether fair. A team is in it together. The Raptors had very poor perimeter defense for a large portion of the season, which meant that there were a heck of a lot of players breaking into the paint to score or kick out.

This partially lead to Toronto’s retooling, which now includes a roster housing some defensive minded guards.

The 23-year-old averaged 12.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks on 57.2 percent shooting from the field and 78.6 percent shooting from the free throw line last season. He played 26.2 minutes a night and played (and started) in 80 games.

Getting the deal done now also means that Valanciunas no longer has to worry about having a typical “contract season.” If he doesn’t develop in any notable fashion or happens to get injured, well, he’s still going to get paid. As fans, we can only hope that the inked deal doesn’t take away from his sense of urgency.

The Raptors are going to need him and will lean more and more heavily on him as the future comes. If they are going to get anywhere significant in the coming seasons, Valanciunas will play a large role. On a team now built better for small ball though, his usage will be interesting.

Overall, this is a very solid deal and every Raps fan should be pleased. The Lithuanian has expressed his happiness with being a Raptor many times in his short career and most recently posted a few words on his Facebook page reaffirming his feelings towards the franchise.

Toronto is lucky to have him. And a little Masai magic never hurts either.

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