Al-Farouq Aminu to Trail Blazers: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction

The Portland Trail Blazers wasted no time getting busy shortly after free agency opened after the stroke of midnight Wednesday morning. 

Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski reported on July 1 the Blazers agreed to terms on a four-year, $30 million deal with swingman Al-Farouq Aminu. That pegs the average annual value of Aminu's deal at $7.5 million, which makes sense for a Blazers team that came into serious cap in recent days. 

On July 9, the Blazers made the deal official.

Aminu boosted his value following a solid showing with the Dallas Mavericks last season. Over the course of 74 appearances (three starts), he averaged 5.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 0.8 blocks. However, it was Aminu's defensive contributions that made him a known commodity across the Association. 

According to NBA.com, his 101.1 defensive rating was the best among any Dallas player who averaged at least 10 minutes last season. 

With those numbers under his belt, Aminu proceeded to decline his $1.1 million player option and test free agency. 

That strategy paid immediate dividends. 

With LaMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Matthews and Robin Lopez all unrestricted free agents and Nicolas Batum recently dealt to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Noah Vonleh and Gerald Henderson, Portland had the space necessary to absorb Aminu's deal.  

Portland also parted with salary by dealing Steve Blake and 23rd overall pick Rondae Hollis-Jefferson to the Brooklyn Nets in a trade that saw the Blazers acquire the cost-controlled Mason Plumlee. 

But as Bleacher Report's Ethan Skolnick opined, Aminu may have been overpaid based on a small sample size in a specialized role: 

Bleacher Report's Dan Favale added that Aminu's generous payday now boosts the financial prospects of more polished offensive free-agent wings:

With Batum out of the picture and Portland undergoing a serious roster shakeup, the onus will be on the 24-year-old small forward to anchor the Blazers' perimeter defense in the year ahead.