PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns and point guard Eric Bledsoe have reached agreement on a five-year, $70 million contract, capping a long, sometimes-tense negotiation to keep him in the desert. Brett Favre Youth Jersey . The deal Wednesday is considerably more than the four-year, $48 million the Suns initially offered but well below the five-year, $80 million-plus maximum contract Bledsoes agent, Rich Paul, sought for the restricted free agent. The sides didnt budge in the negotiations until talks finally progressed in the last few days. "All summer, I knew that I really would be most comfortable coming back to Phoenix because of the great fans, my Suns teammates and our coaches," Bledsoe said in a statement released by the team. "I am very happy it was able to work out this way." Bledsoe faced an Oct. 1 deadline to sign a $3.7 million qualifying offer to play for the Suns this season, then become an unrestricted free agent. "I learned long ago that it doesnt matter how stormy the sea is as long as the ship comes in, and today we are thrilled that the ship has come in and Eric will remain a Sun for a long time," Suns president of basketball operations Lon Babby said in a statement. "He will be an integral part not only of our basketball team, but our Phoenix community." The Suns see Bledsoe as a critical part of their double point-guard system. He missed much of last season after undergoing his second surgery to repair a meniscus in his right knee. When Bledsoe teamed with fellow point guard Goran Dragic last year, the Suns won two-thirds of their games. But injuries kept the duo apart, most significantly the knee surgery. While the Suns coveted Bledsoes skills -- particularly his drives to the basket and defence -- as well as his obvious upside, they balked at giving the 24-year-old guard a max contract but felt highly enough of him to give a rich deal. "We are thrilled Eric Bledsoe will be in a Phoenix Suns uniform for years to come," general manager Ryan McDonough said. "Eric is one the most exciting and dynamic two-way players in the league. He played very well for us on both ends of the floor last season and we feel he is well on his way to establishing himself as one of the elite players in the NBA." Despite Bledsoes knee injury, the Suns won a surprising 48 games and just missed the playoffs. Bledsoe was the backup to Chris Paul with the Los Angeles Clippers before the Suns acquired him and Caron Butler in a three-team trade that sent journeyman forward Jared Dudley to the Clippers and a second-round draft pick to Milwaukee. Bledsoe had knee surgery in October of 2011, then again last January. Injuries limited him to 43 games last season, 40 as a starter. He averaged 17.7 points and 5.5 assists. "Lon, Ryan and the Suns have shown confidence in me, and I am looking to take that responsibility and help our team get better from last year and position ourselves to win an NBA championship," Bledsoe said. "Its why I came back to Phoenix. Dragic, carrying a bigger load when Bledsoe was out, had a breakout season, averaging 20.3 points and 5.9 assists, shooting 50.5 per cent from the field, 41 per cent from 3-point range. The Suns added a third point guard to the mix in the off-season, signing high-scoring free-agent Isaiah Thomas. Aaron Rodgers Packers Jersey . Anderson shook off some unusually poor shooting and hit two clutch 3-pointers in overtime that carried the New Orleans Pelicans to a 111-106 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. Ray Nitschke Youth Jersey . The Maple Leafs handed their embattled head coach a two-year contract extension on Thursday, while at the same time announcing that assistants Dave Farrish, Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon will not be back. http://www.shoptheofficialpackers.com/Elite-Bart-Starr-Packers-Jersey/ . The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries.Joe Allen, Aaron Ramsey and Paul Pogba are on the 40-man shortlist for UEFAs Team of the Year, but Mesut Ozil misses out. Stoke City midfielder Allen was one of Wales standout performers at Euro 2016 alongside Ramsey and Gareth Bale - who also makes the cut - and is one of 12 midfielders that could make the final selection. Manchester Uniteds world-record signing Pogba also features in the list, unveiled by UEFA on Monday, which includes 12 Premier League players in total, while La Liga boasts the strongest representation with 18 nominees. Mesut Ozil is not one of the three Arsenal players on Uefas list However, Arsenal 28-year-old Ozil is not among the nominees, despite having contributed 19 assists in the English top flight last season and representing Germany at the European Championships in the summer. The final team of the year will be voted by supporters, with seven-million fans expected to participate in the online vote on UEFAs website, and Gunners fans have the most Premier League players featured in the shortlist to pick from. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (left) and Paul Pogba are the only two Manchester United players among the nominees Laurent Koscielny and Alexis Sanchez help make Arsene Wengers side the best-represented Premier League team in the cut with three nominees, while Manchester United and Manchester City have two players each, with Tottenham, Chelsea, Leicester, West Ham and Stoke all having one player on the list. Sky Sports Black Friday sale Upgrade to Sky Sports now and get 12 months half price! UEFAs 40-man shortlist for Team of the Year:Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas (Real Madrid), Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Rui Patricio (Sporting Lisbon) Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid)Defenders: Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich) Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid), Pepe (Real Madrid), Juanfran (Atletico Madrid), Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid), Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich)Midfielders: Dimitri Payet (West Ham), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Paul Pogba (Man United), Riyad Mahrez (Leicester), Kevin De Bruyne (Man City), Joe Allen (Stoke), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), NGolo Kante (Chelsea), Grzegorz Krychowiak (PSG) West Ham and France midfielder Dimitri Payet makes the cut Forwards: Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Luis Suarez (Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Man United), Gonzalo Higuain (Juventus), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund), Neymar (Barcelona), Gareth Bale (Real Madrid), Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal), Sergio Aguero, (Man City), Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid) Upgrade to Sky Sports now and get 12 months half price. 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