Lakers Re-Sign Vujacic
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Lakers restricted free agent guard Sasha Vujacic has agreed to a three-year, $15 million contract after emerging last season as a key member of the Western Conference champions.
"We felt Sasha made great progress in this past year, and our coach showed great confidence in playing him the second half of the season," Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak said yesterday in confirming the agreement, first reported by the Riverside (Calif.) Press-Enterprise. "Assuming he continues to work as hard during the offseason as he has in the past, I don't see any reason that trend wouldn't continue."
The 24-year-old Vujacic averaged a career-high 8.8 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 72 games this season, and 8.1 points 2.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists while playing in all 21 playoff games.
Vujacic drew national attention June 10, scoring a career playoff-high 20 points, including a crucial three-pointer with a little less than two minutes remaining, in the Lakers' 87-81 victory over the Celtics in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
The Lakers had made Vujacic a $2.6 million qualifying offer, and he reportedly was considering playing in Europe. . . .
Nearly a month since becoming a restricted free agent, Emeka Okafor is not close to a new deal with Charlotte. Yet GM Rod Higgins remains confident Okafor will remain a Bobcat.
Higgins insisted that talks have not reached a stalemate. He said he's spoken to Okafor's agent, Jeff Schwartz, as recently as Thursday and said the team is not entertaining sign-and-trade offers for their starting big man.
"As we've repeatedly stated, we want Emeka Okafor back on our basketball team," Higgins said. "We're going to continue to have that hope that we will have a resolution and go forward."
Okafor, the Bobcats' first draft pick and the second overall selection in 2004, turned down Charlotte's offer last summer worth more than $12 million per year. . . .
The NBA has filed for trademark rights to six nicknames for the former Seattle SuperSonics, who are relocating to Oklahoma City: Barons, Bison, Energy, Marshalls, Thunder and Wind.
ยท TENNIS: Wimbledon champion Venus Williams has withdrawn from next week's Rogers Cup women's tournament in Montreal because of a knee injury.
