Toronto Raptors: Why OG Anunoby’s contract extension is a steal

The Toronto Raptors signed OG Anunovy to a four-year contract extension.

Ahead of the deadline for NBA teams to sign players to contract extensions, the Toronto Raptors got important business out of the way by signing OG Anunoby to a four-year, $72 million deal. 

This was a pivotal decision for the Raptors to make as they had until 6 p.m. ET Monday to get an extension done with Anunoby otherwise he would have been a restricted free agent. Now, the team will get some certainty with one of their core players for at least the 2024 season.

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Ever since the Raptors selected the 23-year-old with the 23rd overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, it was seen as a major steal given the versatility he has shown. What will make this contract a slamdunk for Toronto is if Anunoby can take his game to the next level offensively which he showed in strides last season.

There is no denying Anunoby’s impact on the defensive side of the ball as he has shown the ability to guard multiple positions. According to ESPN, Anunoby finished sixth among small forwards in defensive real plus-minus last season.

It’s easy to point out the great things Anunoby does and leave out things he certainly needs to improve on. One of those things is his ball-handling skills as he hasn’t always been strong at that and if the team wants to see him take more chances offensively, he will need to show more of what he did in the bubble during the summer.

The decision was also a no-brainer considering the Raptors won’t be making a push for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Getting a deal like Anunoby’s also provides significant value especially if they shed salary elsewhere in order to make a significant addition.

Getting Anunoby for under $20 million should also be seen as a big win considering players who recently signed extensions like Luke Kennard, Jerami Grant and Kyle Kuzma got well over that.

Putting Anunoby alongside Fred VanVleet, Raptors fans should feel pretty optimistic about what the future holds especially if Pascal Siakam can turn things around. This front office staff clearly sees the value of the investment made with Siakam, Anunoby and VanVleet given what they have accomplished so far.

What do you think about the Anunoby contract extension? Do you have high expectations for him going into this season? Let us know in the comments below.