Okonkwo agrees to extension before season opener.
The Atlanta Hawks have signed Onyekah Okonkwo to a four-year, $62 million extension, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday.
With the 2020 draft class entering their final year of the rookie scale, this was the deadline to negotiate extensions. If he didn’t sign an extension by that date, he was likely to become a restricted free agent (RFA) and hit the free agent market.
However, Okonkwo pleased Atlanta fans by signing an extension at the deadline, just one day before the start of the new season, and the money is not bad for the team considering the upcoming salary cap increase.온라인카지노
Okonkwo, out of the University of Southern California, is a top-ranked prospect who was selected by Atlanta with the sixth overall pick in the 2020 draft. He’s an undersized big man with good defense and rim-protection skills, and he drew comparisons to Bam Adebayo when he was drafted.
In his rookie year, he was a backup and didn’t get many opportunities, but he’s gradually earned his place on the team. In his third year, he showed improvement last season, averaging 9.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocked shots in 80 games. It’s positive that he played a full season healthy and without injury issues.
Seeing Okonkwo’s growth, Atlanta decided to stick with him for the long haul by signing him to an extension. Despite having a great big man in Clint Capela, the team saw potential in Okonkwo.
One thing to watch for this season is Okonkwo’s three-point shot. Okonkwo, who didn’t make his first career three-pointer until February of this year, wasn’t much of an outside shooter last season, averaging just 0.2 three-point attempts per game.
However, he has signaled a change this preseason by attempting 3.3 three-pointers per game, so expect to see more range. For a big man, Okonkwo has been a bit of a one-dimensional offense.
