The Denver Nuggets have signed forward Kenneth Faried to a multiyear contract extension, General Manager and Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today. News of this deal has been out for a while now, but it became official today.

“We value the energy and excitement that Kenneth brings night-in and night-out and we are thrilled to have reached an agreement on a contract extension,” said Connelly. “We are truly looking forward to watching Kenneth continue to grow as a player and leader for the Denver Nuggets.”

According to Yahoo Sports, it's "a four-year, $50 million-plus deal on Tuesday, league sources told Yahoo Sports. The extension could be worth nearly $52 million with incentive clauses in the contract, sources said."

According to the Denver Post, "for an athlete whose motivation has always been proving doubters wrong, Faried finally has a chance to blossom beyond his own wildest dreams, because a basketball icon as big as Coach K gave the Manimal the permission to be the best.

Faried, 24, is coming off a Gold medal run with Team USA in the 2014 FIBA World Cup of Basketball in Spain. He started all nine games, averaging 12.4 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 63% from the field en route to being named to the All-Tournament Team.

More from the Post: "The Nuggets have agreed to extend the contract of Faried, pushing his salary into the stratosphere of $12.5 million per year. Can he be more than the Manimal? Could Faried, whose skills have grown since turning pro, become a scorer in clutch situations during the fourth quarter?"

During the 2013-14 campaign, Faried appeared in 80 games, averaging a career-high 13.7 points on 55% shooting from the field to go with 8.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists. With the Nuggets facing a rash of injuries, Faried stepped up and averaged 20.0 points, 11.1 rebounds and 1.14 steals in the final 22 games of the season. He also recorded the first 20/20 game of his career with 24 points and a career-high 21 boards on April 12, 2014 vs. Utah.

Faried, the 22nd overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, has appeared in 206 games (196 starts) in his three years with Denver. He has posted averages of 12.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists while shooting 55.4% from the field. He has registered 70 career double-doubles, with the Nuggets going an impressive 36-5 when he’s done so at Pepsi Center. Additionally, he became the first player in the shot-clock era to post 27-plus points and 17-plus rebounds in 25-minutes-or-less when he accomplished this on April 9, 2012 vs. Golden State.

In his young career Faried has been named Western Conference Player of the Week (Nov. 2012), Western Conference Rookie of the Month (April 2012), All-Rookie First-Team, MVP of the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge at the 2013 All-Star Weekend and was the recipient of the 2012-13 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award presented annually by the Professional Basketball Writers Association.

“I’m ecstatic to be signing this deal. Words really can’t express it, I’m just all smiles right now,” said Faried. “I want to thank God for this opportunity and I’m excited to be a Nugget for the rest of my career.”

Faried entered the 2011 Draft after playing all four years at Morehead State where he became the NCAA modern-era (post-1973) career rebounding leader, surpassing Tim Duncan’s 1,570 to finish his career with 1,673 boards. He also Finished his collegiate career with 86 double-doubles, placing him just one behind Tim Duncan (87) for most in NCAA Division 1 history. Faried was a two-time Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and three-time OVC Defensive Player of the Year.