The Portland Trail Blazers have been busy today, and for all the right reasons. First, ESPN's Shams Charania announced that Portland signed Javonte Cooke to a two-way contract. Shortly after, he reported that Rip City locked down two key pieces of its promising young core, reaching extensions with Toumani Camara and Shaedon Sharpe.
Per Charania, Camara agreed to a four-year, $82 million deal, while Sharpe signed off on four years, $90 million. Considering the upward trajectory of both players, it's safe to say that Blazers general manager Joe Cronin is cooking this Sunday.
Portland gets ahead of Shaedon Sharpe's inevitable breakout
Sharpe's looming extension was one of the trickiest situations to evaluate out of any extension-eligible player. NBA insider Jake Fischer previously reported on The Stein Line that the Blazers' initial offer was the same (or very similar) amount that Sharpe just agreed to.
It's surprising that Portland was able to secure Sharpe without having to increase the offer, as many analysts suggested that Sharpe's deal could be north of $100 million. ESPN's Bobby Marks proposed a $105 million contract.
Sharpe is coming off arguably the best season of his career, averaging 18.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists at just 22 years old. There have also been multiple signs pointing to a breakout campaign in the 2025-26 season.
For one, Sharpe was named one of the standout performers in the Blazers' training camp, which clearly translated to his preseason play. In addition to the internal improvement, Sharpe is also set to take on an increased role in Portland's offense following the departure of Anfernee Simons and, unfortunately, the injury to Scoot Henderson.
If Portland didn't reach an extension by Monday's deadline, Sharpe was set to become a restricted free agent. In other words, they would've risked letting the market determine the value of a rising star who could be coming off a breakout season. It was smart for Portland to get ahead of this, especially considering the surprising value.
It always made sense for them to extend Sharpe before the season, as the pros significantly outweighed the cons. Between Jonathan Kuminga, Josh Giddey, Quentin Grimes, and others, we saw how messy restricted free agency can get this summer. Portland proactively avoided that headache.
Marks also noted an extremely important factor, which is that Sharpe had a $25.2 million cap hold as a free agent, which already put Portland over the cap. For the reasoning why the Blazers might not extend Sharpe, he wrote, "The Blazers would have to let Sharpe walk in free agency to free up room."
With the Blazers' dire need for star talent and the way Sharpe has looked this summer, improving as a shooter and defender, simply letting him walk was never going to be a realistic option. Portland was wise to get ahead of Sharpe's breakout as they continue to invest in their young core with team-friendly deals.