Clippers Rumors: Team dangling Jamal Crawford for first-rounder?
CLIPPERS RUMORS — If you’ve been waiting on a flurry of news regarding the Clippers here’s the first of many tidbits from a Adrian Wojnarowski trade deadline “primer”: the Yahoo scribe states the Clippers are dangling reigning Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford for a first-round pick which they’d hope to use to acquire a reliable small forward.
"Nevertheless, the Clippers have probed the market with Jamal Crawford to see if there’s a way to acquire a first-round pick that could help them make a competitive offer to Denver for Wilson Chandler or Arron Afflalo, league sources said."
This sounds like a great idea in theory, but if the Clippers paid attention to the Houston Rockets-Chris Bosh scenario that played out this past summer, they may want to proceed with caution on this front.
For those who don’t know, following the Decision Pt. II with LeBron James announcing his return tot he Cleveland Cavaliers, the Houston Rockets made several deals — Jeremy Lin and a pick to the Lakers, Omer Asik to the Pelicans — in hopes of landing Chris Bosh. That plan backfired as Bosh, last minute, decided to return to the Miami Heat leaving the Rockets without a first-round pick and assets to improve their roster.
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But if the Clippers can find themselves immersed in a three-team deal that’d guarantee whatever asset is obtain for Jamal Crawford is immediately flipped for Chandler/Affalo/any other above-average small forward, it sounds like a move that’d bolster Los Angeles’ chances going forward.
This dead horse can’t be beaten any further, but everything the Clippers want to do at the trade deadline but are unable to because of the lack of assets comes back Doc Rivers’ willingness to dump Jared Dudley along with the teams 2017 first-round selection this past summer. That same pick could’ve been used to acquire Chandler or Afflalo, or Jeff Green who the Clippers were interested but missed out on following a deal that sent the small forward to the Memphis Grizzlies for … you guessed it, a first-round pick (and Tayshaun Prince), or the combination of J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert who were moved from New York to Cleveland, both players who’d improve the Clippers’ current wing situation. And if Dudley’s health rounds into form, the front office would’ve had two intriguing forward (Dudley, Barnes) plus a pick to shop at the deadline, which would be more than enough to pry an upgrade from someone.
Instead, they’re in this position hoping on a wish and a prayer some team with a front office as loose with assets as they were falls in love with an aging microwave scorer to improve their reserve unit — seems unlikely, but in a entertaining year we’ve seen crazier things.
This season, Crawford is averaging 16.0 points on 39 percent shooting, 2.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game while posting a Player Efficiency Rating of 16.9.
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