General Manager Jeff Bower has been involved in discussions with forward David West's agent, Lance Young, to finalize a contract extension, The Times Picauyne is reporting.

If an agreement is not reached before the league-mandated Oct. 31 deadline, West would become a restricted free agent next July, eligible to begin negotiations with any team in the league.

If possible, Bower wants to get West locked up now for the next three to four seasons to avoid getting into a bidding war.

"It's a situation where we will continue to have discussions through the remainder of this month," Bower said. "At this point, it's a situation that we're going to deal with privately."

West was runner-up for the league's most improved player award won by Phoenix's Boris Diaw.