Thaddeus Young Re-Signs with Nets: Latest Contract Details, Comments, Reaction

A free agent for the first time in his NBA career, Thaddeus Young was bound to explore all of his options. In the end, he decided to re-sign with the Brooklyn Nets rather than join his fourth roster in less than 12 months.

Young agreed to a four-year, $50 million deal to stay with Brooklyn on July 1, per Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Young announced the news later in the day. 

The Nets announced the signing on July 9:

Young, 27, was sent to the Nets from Minnesota in exchange for Kevin Garnett at the trade deadline. It was the second time he was traded within the calendar year, having been sent to the Timberwolves last August as part of the Kevin Love trade.

Young averaged 13.8 points and 5.9 rebounds in 28 games with Brooklyn, forming a workable frontcourt with Brook Lopez. Despite his success, he chose to decline a player option that would have paid him $10.2 million in 2015-16. Young had maintained opting out would be a financial decision and he wanted to remain a Net long-term when he discussed the situation during the regular season.

Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

"It’s one of those things where they want me for the future, they want to keep me around," Young told Nets Daily in March. "It’s a mutual feeling."

The Nets, who retained the Bird rights that allowed them to go over the cap to sign Young, were publicly confident they could get him to return. 

“I’m pretty confident because we have some tools in our favor,” Nets general manager Billy King told Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News before the draft. 

While he's not a star, Young has settled into something resembling NBA comfort. He can move back and forth between the two forward spots, consistently knocking down mid-range jumpers offensively and poking his hand into the lane for steals on the other end. He's particularly good at using his length on late closeouts, with opposing players shooting 3 percent worse against Young on shots beyond 15 feet, per NBA.com.

Size has always been a bit of an issue, and Young's not ever going to develop into a rim protector. This contract goes through his 31st birthday, which might be an issue once his athleticism totally depletes. Young is the prototypical mid-tier veteran whom smart teams won't overpay. How we judge contracts this summer is fluid given the impending influx of cap space from the TV deal, but this is one of those deals that will be polarizing.

Either way, the Nets don't have a draft pick for like 800 years after sending them all to Boston. They have no incentive to be bad this season. Keeping Young is a necessary evil to avoid the lottery. 

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter