Cory Joseph to Raptors: Latest Contract Details, Analysis and Reaction

The San Antonio Spurs withdrew their qualifying offer for Cory Joseph on July 5. Joseph wasted little time in returning to his native land to sign a free-agent contract with the Toronto Raptors. NBA Canada confirmed the deal was official on July 9.

ESPN's Chris Broussard reported Joseph landed in Toronto on a four-year, $30 million deal, with a player option after the third year. Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News had reported on the Spurs' decision to withdraw the offer of $3,034,091 (h/t Spotrac).

Joseph tweeted, "#WeTheNorth here I come!!!!!" to confirm he'd be joining the Raptors for the foreseeable future. He also expressed gratitude for his time in San Antonio in an extended post:

"A sincere thank you to all the fans, RC, Coach Pop and the entire Spurs organization for all the support over the last 4 years. SA will always be close to my heart... had my first game and first championship here! #ThankYou #NextChapter."

NBA TV's Tas Melas described the unique opportunity Joseph has to play for his hometown team:

The 23-year-old point guard figures to be the primary backup for All-Star Kyle Lowry, who has three years still remaining on his current deal. Toronto needed to secure someone like Joseph since it traded away Greivis Vasquez to the Milwaukee Bucks on draft night.

Hoops Critic's Josh Eberley described Joseph's suddenly sweet situation well:

TSN's Josh Lewenberg analyzed what Joseph arriving in Toronto might mean for the team's philosophy:

Joseph averaged just 14.9 minutes in four seasons with the Spurs, who still have the likes of Tony Parker and Patty Mills at Joseph's position.

It's going to be interesting to see how Joseph takes on far more significant status as a Raptor. The hope is he doesn't press too much in playing for friendly fans and trying to live up to a generous contract.

Although this is quite the overpay, it's smart for Toronto to lock Joseph in at least a year beyond the NBA's salary-cap bump coming in 2016-17. He won't be able to opt out until after 2017-18, when Lowry's contract is up and DeMar DeRozan's future is decided. Both of them may well command a max deal.

The Raptors do indeed appear to be placing a premium on defense, which makes sense since they were 19th in points allowed last season while being one of the NBA's top offenses. Joseph helps in that regard on the perimeter, giving Toronto two tenacious floor generals who are competitive on both ends.