For the first time in years, the Blazers managed to nail down a core piece on a long-term contract that can be described as “team-friendly.”
Portland re-signed restricted free agent center Jusuf Nurkic on Friday to a four-year deal worth a reported $48 million. The 23-year-old Bosnian big man averaged a career-high 14.3 PPG and 9 RPG in 79 starts last season while helping the Blazers post a top-10 defensive rating.
After mucking up his books with big-dollar deals for Evan Turner, Allen Crabbe, Moe Harkless and Meyers Leonard in recent years, Blazers president Neil Olshey threaded the needle with Nurkic.