J-Rich's Big Year: Phoenix Suns' guard Jason Richardson is coming to the end of his contract, a deal that will pay him roughly $14.4 million this season.
The Suns have a contract extension on the table and Richardson is still pondering the offer as the Suns get ready to open training camp.For Richardson, this could be a defining year as the Suns' roster is going to need to replace the 23.1 points and 8.9 rebounds per game the club lost when Amar'e Stoudemire opted for New York in free agency.
"I feel like I'm going to college," Richardson said to Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic.. "I've got to pick a decision. It's going to be fun. I'm not even worried about it. What happens, happens. If I get an extension here, I would love to be here and maybe finish my career here. It's a business. You never know. There's no pressure on me to go out and perform just because it's my contract year. I'm always a firm believer that if you work hard, things will come out your way."
Richardson's career scoring average is 18.3 point per game which is a bit higher than his 16.05 average as a member of the Suns. In 2005-2006 Richardson averaged 23.2 points per game, meaning there is room to improve, and that's a good thing coming into a contract year.
"I'm not necessarily motivated (by a contract year) but I know what's at stake," he said. "I know I put in a lot of work this summer. I really prepared myself. I know this is probably my last big chance to get a contract. I'm getting up there. I'm going to be 30 in January."
Given how the Suns handled Amar'e Stoudemire's contract extension, you can bet the deal on the table for Richardson has a number of incentives and guarantee triggers which is likely why Richardson is holding off on signing the deal.
If J-Rich can be the second or third scoring option for the Suns this season his numbers may go way up, not only in scoring averages, but in what the Suns would be willing to guarantee in contract dollars.
It's going to be a big year for Jason Richardson and for a Suns' team that needs scoring; having a volume scorer in a contract year isn't a bad problem to have.
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