Bosh not planning to sign extension with Raptors

TORONTO (AP) -- Chris Bosh doesn't plan to sign a contract extension with the Toronto Raptors this summer and is preparing to become a free agent at the end of next season.

Bosh is in the final year of a deal that will pay him $15.7 million. While Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo has spoken optimistically in the past about signing Bosh to an extension this summer, Bosh said that isn't his intention. He said leaving his status up in the air could actually help both himself and the Raptors, who missed the playoffs this season with a 33-49 record.

"[When] I signed a three-year [extension in 2006]... I had a goal in mind, and that was to put myself in the best position [in 2010] ... I'm thinking I just want to stick to my goal, stick to what I was doing," Bosh told reporters. "That's a part of the plan ... I just want to address things [after] next season. There's a reason why I did things the way I did them back then."

Should Bosh become a free agent in 2010, he'll join a crop of players that could include LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash.