Ridnour |
The Sonics signed first-round draft pick
Luke Ridnour to a three-year contract, Sonics General Manager Rick Sund announced. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.
“We’re very pleased to have Luke on board with us,” said Sund. “He’s an extremely skillful player who’s very fundamentally sound. I think he’ll benefit from the fact that he is from this area as he’ll be able to spend a lot of time with our coaches and staff.”
Ridnour, 22, was the Sonics’ first-round selection (14th overall) of this year’s draft. The Blaine, Wash. native was named the 2003 Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year and was the 2003 Pac-10 Tournament MVP – one of only two players in conference history to earn both awards in the same season.
“It’s amazing to be on the roster of my home state’s NBA team,” said Ridnour. “I grew up a Sonics fan and it’s a dream come true to play professionally for them.”
The 6-2 guard averaged 19.7 points and 6.6 assists per game last year at Oregon and was named honorable mention All-America by the Associated Press as a sophomore and junior. He was named Pac-10 Freshman of the Year. Ridnour is among the Ducks’ all time top 10 in seven statistical categories including assists (third), steals (second) and scoring (ninth).
