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Enes Kanter is staying put.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have decided to match the offer sheet that Kanter signed with the Portland Trail Blazers, the team announced on Sunday.
In accordance with this summer's trend, Kanter announced the move in a series of emojis.
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— Enes Kanter (@Enes_Kanter) July 13, 2015
Kanter's offer is reportedly worth $70 million over four seasons, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. There is also a 15 percent trade kicker bonus.
The Thunder initially offered Kanter $62 million over four seasons, so it wasn't a particularly difficult decision for Oklahoma City, reports Wojnarowski.
Thunder general manager Sam Presti lavished Kanter with praise in his press release.
"We traded for Enes last season with the intention of keeping him as a member of the Thunder for several years to come, and we are excited that he will continue with us," said Presti. "He adds valuable depth to our roster, diversity to our frontcourt and the dimension that he brings offensively will positively impact our team."
Kanter is a luxury for the Thunder, but there was little opportunity cost associated with matching. Had the Thunder not matched, there wouldn't have been enough cap room to sign a replacement.
But it does come as a curious decision.
On one hand, Kanter is a fantastic low-post scorer, something the Thunder lack. The 7-footer boasts a career shooting percentage of 65.2 percent from within three feet of the basket, and can finish with both hands. He can also reliably hit the mid-range jumper and has even toyed with learning the 3-point shot. He averaged 18.7 points and 11 rebounds with the Thunder last season.
But Kanter is a historically awful defender for his position. His career defensive box plus-minus is -1.9, which is the worst figure since 1973-74. He grades out worse than players like Eddy Curry and Andrea Bargnani. Playing alongside Serge Ibaka should cover for some of his shortcomings, but the Thunder were still 7.8 points worse per 100 possessions on defense with Kanter last season.
Moreover, the deal pushes the Thunder $13 million into the luxury tax for next season, a territory that the franchise has been notoriously reluctant to enter. But with Kevin Durant on the eve of becoming a free agent, the team needs to pull out all the stops.
In that sense, Kanter represents an expensive luxury. It's not an ideal move, but in lieu of any replacements and with optics and expectations to manage, it's a defensible decision.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers sit empty-handed, with $25 million of cap room at their disposal.
