The Los Angeles Clippers were no longer interested in Jamal Crawford, but the three-time Sixth Man of the Year award winner doesn’t have a problem when it comes to finding a new team: The Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks are all hot on the trail.
Crawford, 36, averaged 14.2 points while shooting 40.4% from the field on his way to his third 6MOtY award, two of those coming during his four years with the Clippers. He expected to get a nice offer from the Clippers, but reports suggest they low balled him, giving Austin Rivers (3 years, $35 million) a bigger offer than him. Worth it or not is not the question here. Crawford thought he was worth more. I’m not sure it’s about being insulted or not. From a pure business standpoint, Crawford can make more on the outside.
Crawford has already said he’s not looking for a contender, he’s looking for someone who’ll give him minutes and money. It can be a team on the rise, or just someone who needs a combo guard to give them points. And while Crawford doesn’t necessarily fit in with the analytics-efficiency movement, points are always good to add, and it’s no harm if there’s one player whose sole purpose on the team is to score, while ignoring everything else.
Yes, Crawford is a bad defender, hardly passes to anyone else, and has rarely seen a shot he doesn’t like. He’s an asset on the bench if you limit his minutes and put him in lineups that can make up for his weaknesses. I don’t see any championship contender signing him (if the Celtics add Durant I’m pretty sure Crawford is out of the picture), but for a team that’s looking for a two-year rental just so they can have a scorer on the bench who doesn’t need any help creating points, Crawford is a pretty good player to sign.