Coming off his best season as a professional, veteran forward Jared Sullinger has cashed in on a new one-year deal with the Toronto Raptors, as first reported by The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski on July 11.

Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported the deal is worth approximately $6 million, while Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun reported the Raptors used the midlevel exception of $5.6 million to sign Sullinger.

The power forward tweeted he was headed to Toronto on July 11 and thanked the city of Boston. The Raptors confirmed the signing on Thursday:

After battling injuries in his first three NBA seasons, Sullinger played in a career-high 81 games in 2015-16 with the Boston Celtics. His scoring average did drop from 13.3 points per game the previous two years to 10.3 last season, but he set a new high-water mark in rebounding (8.3) and tied his career best with 2.3 assists.

Despite the numbers Sullinger put up, there were lingering concerns about his long-term viability. NESN.com's Darren Hartwell pondered whether the Celtics should re-sign him:

Sullinger shook off preseason concerns about his weight to deliver a solid 2015-16 campaign, solidifying his status as Boston's frontcourt bruiser. But his effectiveness went out the window in the playoffs, where he was overmatched by Atlanta Hawks big men Paul Millsap and Al Horford and played just 13.5 minutes per game. Sullinger is a solid player, but if the Celtics want to be legitimate title contenders, they can do better in free agency.

It is a valid question for a contending team like the Celtics to ask, though Sullinger did prove to be an effective weapon last year. He does need to have his minutes limited, and Boston head coach Brad Stevens did well on that front in 2015-16, holding him to 23.6 minutes per game.

There are reasons to believe Sullinger's best basketball is ahead of him. He's just 24 years old and has good size at 6'9". However, Danny Ainge, the Celtics' president of basketball operations, criticized his conditioning in 2015, per Toucher and Rich of 98.5 The Sports Hub (h/t Brian Robb of Boston.com):

Jared just hasn't met his goals. He's not up to the standards that he wants, and is not up to the standards that we think are in his best interests for the long-term health of his career. He's not up to par to the standards that we feel are necessary to be a consistent winning player and play with great conditioning.

It's not a coincidence Sullinger had his best season after hearing those words from his boss. Giving a player who has had questionable conditioning in the past a big new contract can be foolish, though at least he did respond in a positive manner.

Sullinger hasn't developed into a dynamic power forward after being selected with the 21st pick four years ago. He's been a solid performer who has found his niche as a role player on a good team with a strong coach.

There is always room for a player of Sullinger's caliber on an NBA roster, even if it winds up costing the Raptors a few more dollars than they will end up getting back.