The Dallas Mavericks and Josh Howard Thursday reached agreement on a four-year contract extension believed to be worth in excess of 40 million U.S. dollars.

The Mavericks and Howard were facing an October 31 deadline to agree on an extension and prevent Howard from becoming a restricted free agent in July, according to the ESPN on Thursday.

The new contract won't kick in until next season, with Howard scheduled to earn 1.7 million U.S. dollars in the final year of his rookie contract.

Reaching terms with Howard means Mavericks owner Mark Cuban will have awarded new contracts to four of the biggest names in the organization since the Mavericks made their first trip to the NBA Finals in June: Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, coach Avery Johnson and Howard.

Source: Xinhua