http://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources--enes-kanter-thunder-trail-blazers-211101076.html

 Sources: Thunder match Trail Blazers' max offer sheet for Enes Kanter

 By Adrian Wojnarowski 1 hour ago Yahoo Sports

The Oklahoma City Thunder have matched restricted free-agent center Enes Kanter's $70 million maximum contract offer sheet with Portland and will retain him, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti informed Portland of his decision to retain Kanter on Sunday night, league sources said.

Kanter's’ deal includes a player option on the fourth year and a 15 percent trade kicker bonus.

Kanter traveled to Portland on Thursday to sign the offer sheet and it was sent via email on Thursday afternoon to Oklahoma City, beginning a 72-hour window to match the offer.

For Oklahoma City, the decision to match the offer sheet was an easy one. The Thunder offered a four-year, $62 million deal before Kanter signed the $70 million offer sheet with Portland, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The Thunder are over the luxury tax threshold this season, but that’ll change once the cap rises in 2016-17 with the influx of television money. Even if Kevin Durant signs a potential $200 million max contract extension in the summer of 2016, the Thunder still expect to be under the tax.

Oklahoma City avoided paying the luxury tax for several years, but will have to do so in 2015-16 because it is over the salary cap of $70 million.

Kanter, 23, is an excellent offensive player and gives Oklahoma City a cornerstone young player to move forward with uncertainty about Durant’s future with the Thunder.

The Thunder acquired Kanter as part of a three-way deal in February with Utah. Kanter was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft.