Seattle SuperSonics General Manager Rick Sund announced today that the Sonics have signed Nick Collison to a multi-year contract extension. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not released.

“We’re excited to have Nick signed,” Sund said. “He can play either the four or the five positions, so he’s an asset to our team. We’ve seen steady improvement over the last two years out of Nick. He’s a great young man who worked hard all summer long, and we look forward to a good year. We now have three young players signed, and we’re excited about the next few years with the Sonics.”

With the signing of Collison, the Sonics have signed three young players in the off-season. Chris Wilcox was re-signed in August after joining the team in February prior to the trade deadline, and Luke Ridnour signed a multi-year contract extension yesterday. Both Collison and Ridnour were set to be free agents next summer.

“I’m happy with the deal,” Collison said. “We’ve got a good young core of players, and I’m happy to be a part of it. We’ve had some good off-season workouts and we’re looking forward to a good year. I really feel like I’m developing as a four or five player and I’m comfortable with Coach Hill’s style.”

Last season, Collison averaged 7.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 66 games. He led the team in rebounding 17 times and recorded eight double-doubles. In his first year playing in the NBA, Collison averaged 5.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in 2004-05.

“I am personally very pleased we have been able to secure the talents of two promising young NBA players in the past 24 hours,” said Clay Bennett, Chairman of The Professional Basketball Club, LLC. “Let me commend our General Manager Rick Sund for successfully completing these two contracts in a timely manner."

“This is a good time for us,” said Sonics Head Coach Bob Hill. “We’ve had a very productive off-season with the signing of Chris, Luke and Nick. We’re excited about our young core of players, and the next few years are going to be good ones for us.”

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