Rookie Sixers center Adem Bona reportedly agrees to 4-year contract originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Rookie big man Adem Bona is now fully locked in with the Sixers.
The 41st overall pick in this years NBA draft has agreed to sign a four-year, $8 million contract, The Athletics Shams Charania reported.
The NBAs second-round pick exception allows teams to sign second-rounders without affecting their salary cap outlook. Under the second-round exception, the final season of a four-year deal is a team option.
Bona won the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year award as a UCLA sophomore and averaged 12.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.8 blocks.
Hes been outstanding defensively in his first four Sixers summer league appearances, hustling all over the place and hunting blocked shots. Bonas nine blocks over the Sixers three games in Utah led the Salt Lake City summer league. He rejected five more during the teams win Saturday night against the Pistons in Las Vegas.
One of the things I would love to show is to be able to do everything defensively on ball, pick-and-roll, switching, Bona said at his introductory press conference. Thats one thing I would love to show my rookie year. Offensively, to be able to get out in the pick-and-roll and to play fast, which is one of my strengths.
The two other centers on the Sixers roster are seven-time All-Star Joel Embiid and exceptional veteran rebounder Andre Drummond.
The 21-year-old Bona believes being Embiids teammate will help as he finds what works for him at the NBA level.
Playing against him, going against him every day is going to be a handful for me, he said. And also, its going to be a learning process for me. To be able to learn from such an amazing player, its really going to be a good step for me in my career.