Trail Blazers, Toumani Camara agree to four-year, $82 million contract extension, per report

The Portland Trail Blazers have agreed to a four-year, $82 million contract extension with third-year forward Toumani Camara, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. Camara had a team option for the 2026-27 season, but now the Blazers have locked him into an extension that will take him through the 2029-30 season.

Camara is the perfect example of a diamond in the rough, as he was taken with the 52nd pick in the 2023 draft by the Phoenix Suns and then traded to Portland before his rookie season started. In just two seasons, he’s developed into an everyday starter and last season earned All-Defensive Second Team honors. He’s the ideal 3-and-D piece capable of defending both forward positions, and is a reliable 3-point threat, making 37.5% of his shots from beyond the arc last season. He also ranked ninth in total steals, too.

Camara is a vital piece of Portland’s rebuild, and with his contract situation resolved, the Blazers can now turn focus to an extension for another rising young star on the roster in Shaedon Sharpe. The fourth-year guard is eligible for a rookie max extension, but he’s reportedly already turned down Portland’s initial offer of four years and $90 million.

The deadline for Portland and Sharpe to come to an agreement on an extension is Oct. 20 at 3 p.m. If a deal isn’t reached, the athletic guard will enter restricted free agency next summer. Given how poorly restricted free agency has gone for a number of players this summer — primarily Jonathan Kuminga, who played the longest game of chicken with the Golden State Warriors — that’s likely not a situation the Blazers or Sharpe want to be in.

Perhaps Portland would increase their offer to give Sharpe something similar to what the Chicago Bulls gave Josh Giddey this summer, which was a four-year, $100 million deal. That’s a $10 million increase from Portland’s original offer, but in the wake of the Sacramento Kings giving Keegan Murray — the No. 4 pick in the same draft — $140 million over five years, Sharpe may want more. Sharpe’s been the far more productive player in terms of counting stats, but Murray’s been an integral piece on a playoff team already, something Sharpe has yet to prove yet.

We’ll see if the Blazers and Sharpe come to an agreement before Monday’s deadline, but at the very least, signing Camara to a team-friendly extension is great news for Portland. Given how well he played last season, Camara will certainly outplay the $20.5 million a year he’ll be making on this new deal. But it’s a win for a Blazers team that could be a sneaky play-in squad if guys like Camara, Sharpe and Deni Avdija continue to develop.