On October 21, Beijing time, according to espn reporter Andrew Lopez, Valanciunas and pelicans signed a 2-year, $30.1 million contract in advance, counting his remaining 1-year contract, the next 3 years, Valanciunas' contract is 3 years 44.1 million.
In the offseason, Varan was traded by the Grizzlies to the Pelicans. Varan said in an interview that he felt the pelicans' sincerity during the preseason and thought it was a team he was willing to play for a long time. "For me, it's good here, so I decided to stay," Varan said, "and if they're willing to keep me, I'm going to be very happy to stay here and play." I feel like this is my home and I'm happy right now. From a coaching point of view, they know me and there are great teammates here and they welcome me. ”
Salary expert Bobby Max said Varan's two contracts renewed were paid $14.7 million and $15.4 million a year, respectively, which is already the highest salary the Pelicans can offer so far. Varan came to the team through trades in the offseason, and the longest contract he could sign was a total of 3 seasons (including the remaining 1 year of his original contract), and the annual increase was 5%.
The 29-year-old Varan was the No. 5 pick in 2011 and played for the Raptors and Grizzlies in the first nine seasons of his career. So far in his career, he has averaged 12.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. In the 2020-21 season, Valanciunas was very efficient, averaging 17.1 points and 12.5 rebounds in 28.3 minutes per game, shooting a career-high of 59.2%. He ranks third in the league in rebounds and second in front-court rebounds per game (4.1). He is third in number of double-doubles (49), behind Jokic and Westbrook.
After signing the contract, Varan said he could fully focus on the new season, and his first task was to assist Zion in the playoffs. "We have a lot of things to do now," Varan said, "and we want to prove that we can be very good, that we can learn how to win." We have the ability to do it, and we have enough talent. We're going to work hard to win some games. Last season, the Pelicans were 31-41, 11th and missed the play-offs.