It took an entire offseason of negotiations to settle a new three-year contract for Hawaii men’s basketball coach Gib Arnold. Despite that, a next round of talks is already in the works.

With Arnold’s new deal — worth a base amount of $344,000 annually — out of the way just in time for the start of the 2011-12 season, UH athletic director Jim Donovan has already targeted a 60-day window in the summer of 2013 as an ideal time to re-explore the contract. Depending on UH’s performance over the next two years, an additional raise or extension for Arnold could be possible from July 1 until August 31, 2013.

"We created this contract, and we’ll be meeting again in a little less than two years to look at seeing if we need to modify it again," Donovan said in an interview this week. "Our long-term goal is to have a successful program and to have Coach Arnold leading it."

Optimism is high in the Manoa Lower Campus about the program following a 19-13 first season and a postseason appearance under Arnold, and no hard feelings seem to be held about the lengthy contract back-and-forth (believed to be primarily about length of term) that ensued over the summer.

The deal, which replaces his initial three-year, $240,000-annual contract of March 2010, keeps Arnold in place through the 2013-14 season, with up to three one-year extensions through 2016-17, if benchmarks are hit.

Arnold spoke highly of the contract in terms of job security, both for recruiting purposes and for his family.

"There was a little bit made about how we were, during the negotiation process, that maybe we weren’t on the same page," Arnold said. "I think it was just the opposite. I think Jim and I have always been on the same page. And he’s always been great in supporting our staff and what we’re trying to build here. It’s just one step further to that, I think."

This season Arnold gets a one-year rollover if his team achieves just one of the following: UH reaches 18 wins; makes the NIT or NCAA Tournament; finishes first or second in the Western Athletic Conference regular season; or makes the WAC tournament title game with an overall winning record.

Starting next season, when UH joins the Big West Conference, the requirements get a little steeper. Arnold gets an extension if he hits 18 wins again, as long as UH’s Sagarin strength of schedule rating is above 185. Or, a deal kicks in with 20 wins regardless of strength of schedule. The rest of the criteria remain the same.

"For what we can control, and that’s recruiting and keeping guys eligible and getting them to play hard, those goals can be reached," Arnold said. "Again, those goals are benchmarks, but they’re not written in stone. We obviously hope we can do better than that, and continue to show progression in this program."

Arnold said Illinois has agreed to play a game in the islands next season. UH also has a road game lined up at UNLV.

"We wanted to make sure we get some quality teams in there," Arnold said.

The deal also carries several cash bonuses for performance.

Salary bonuses include: wins on national TV ($6,000 each); winning the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic ($5,000); season-ticket benchmarks ($10,000 starting at 4,500 sold, and $10,000 more for every additional 1,000 tickets until 7,500); conference and national coach of the year honors ($5,000 and $10,000); regular-season home sellouts ($3,000 each); and home turnstile crowds above 5,000 people ($2,000 each). For any postseason tournament qualification (NCAA, NIT, CBI or CIT), Arnold is guaranteed a minimum of $12,000.

"If things go great, Gib’s got a chance to earn more for him and his family," Donovan said. "But that’s great, that’s what we want."

The coach wasted little time in reaping the rewards of the contract. He earned $6,000 for the ESPN-televised, 86-67 season-opening win over Cal State Northridge on Tuesday morning.

Donovan said 10 individual and commercial donors make up $50,000 of private funds toward Arnold’s annual base salary.

"They don’t want to be named, they just want to support Gib," Donovan said. "They believe in what he’s doing. They know men’s basketball can be very successful here, and they’re doing it specifically because Gib’s leading it."