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Cleveland Cavaliers forward Drew Gooden has signed a multi-year contract extension with the team, General Manager Danny Ferry announced today. Per the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, terms of the deal were not disclosed. InsideHoops.com will post details of the contract later today.

“We are excited to move forward with Drew as an integral part of our team. Re-signing him was a priority for us in the offseason and we certainly will be a better team with him. He played well last year and we are confident he can continue to build a reputation as a defender and tenacious rebounder. We made a good step forward last year as a team and we felt it was important to keep the core and build around it,” Ferry said. "Also, we appreciate Drew's sentiments on his desire to be in Cleveland, his excitement about the continued opportunity to play with his teammates and work toward a Championship."

During the 2005-06 season, Gooden played in 79 games (all starts) and averaged 10.7 points and 8.4 rebounds in 27.5 minutes. He ranked fifth in the league in offensive rebounds per 48 minutes (5.2), eighth in offensive rebounds per game (3.0), total offensive rebounds (237) and rebounds per 48 minutes (14.7), 16th in field goal percentage (.512), 18th in rebounds per game (8.4) and 22nd in double-doubles (23). He was the only player in the league to average at least 10.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in less than 28.0 minutes per game. During the playoffs, he averaged 8.2 points and 7.5 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game in 13 games (all starts). He scored a playoff career-high 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in Game 2 versus Washington in the First Round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Since being acquired by the Cavaliers prior to the start of the 2004-05 season, he has played in 161 games (159 starts) and averaged 12.6 points and 8.8 rebounds in 29.2 minutes per game. During that time, Gooden ranks fifth in total rebounds among all power forwards.

Drew has also been very active in the Northeast Ohio community since his arrival. He opened the Drew Gooden Reading and Learning Center at Cleveland’s East End Neighborhood House in September 2005, won the NBA Community Assist Award for the month of October 2005, was named the Al Lerner Community Service Award winner at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards in February 2006 and has twice been named to the “Good Guys in Sports” list by The Sporting News.

Gooden was originally selected by the Memphis Grizzlies with the fourth overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft. He was acquired along with Anderson Varejao on July 23, 2004 from the Orlando Magic. In 310 career games (223 starts), Gooden has averages of 12.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 28.1 minutes per game.

Discuss Gooden and the team on the Cleveland Cavaliers Forum.