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SALT LAKE CITY — The Portland Trail Blazers have struck again.
A year after trying to snatch Paul Millsap away from the Jazz with a "toxic" contract offer, the Blazers have signed Utah starting shooting guard Wesley Matthews to an offer sheet in the range of $34 million over five years.
Matthews signed the offer today, his agent Lance Young confirmed.
Here's the tough part for the Jazz: Portland frontloaded the contract with a $9.2 million first-year jackpot for the restricted free agent in an effort to make it too pricey for Utah to match, Yahoo! Sports reported.
That's similar to what the Blazers did with Millsap's $32 million deal last summer.
The Jazz, who matched Millsap's contract, will have seven days to decide whether or not to match Portland's bid for Matthews.
Despite not being drafted, the Marquette product earned his way onto the Jazz's roster last season. He proceeded to work his way into the rotation and eventually became Utah's starting shooting guard.
Matthews, one of only two Jazz players to see action in all 82 games, averaged 9.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in the regular season. He picked up his play even more in the playoffs, averaging 13.2 points and 4.4 rebounds while playing solid defense in two rounds.
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