OKLAHOMA CITY — Before even playing a game with the Oklahoma City Thunder, center Kendrick Perkins signed an extension Tuesday to stay with his new team for a while.

Perkins joined the Thunder five days ago in a trade with Boston, where he spent the first seven years of his career and won the 2008 NBA title.

Now, he’s due to make about $36 million while staying in Oklahoma City through the 2014-15 season.

Perkins said he was attracted to stay in Oklahoma City because of similarities he sees to his Texas hometown and by his first impressions of the Thunder as a “first-class” organization. He would have become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, but said he didn’t “want to take anything for granted.”