Clipper Nation
11-04-2012, 11:50 PM
Who was this offseason’s most underrated acquisition?
Jamal Crawford. As soon as the NBA’s free agency period began on midnight of July 1, the Los Angeles Clippers placed a call to Crawford and made plans to fly him out to California for a face-to-face meeting. The Clippers zeroed in on Crawford almost immediately and made it clear that signing the 32-year-old guard was their top priority. At the time, the Clippers were criticized for inking Crawford to a four-year deal since he had struggled during his one-year stint with the Portland Trail Blazers and because L.A. didn’t even consider other available shooting guards such as Ray Allen or Courtney Lee.
Now, Crawford is making the Clippers look very smart. He has outplayed every other offseason acquisition outside of James Harden, averaging 25.6 points off the bench for Los Angeles and shooting a career-high 53.4 percent from the field. He’s currently leading the Clippers in scoring, which is impressive considering he’s playing with two perennial All-Stars in Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Through three games, Crawford has the same Player Efficiency Rating (29.8) as LeBron James. :wow Making Crawford’s production even more impressive is the fact that he’s still adjusting to the change of scenery and trying to get acclimated with new teammates, coaches and plays.
While it’s still early, it’s clear that Crawford is a good fit in Los Angeles. He’s at his best when he’s playing on a contender and leading the second unit, which is why he was so effective during his two years with the Atlanta Hawks as well. Crawford was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2010 and it seems the award is his to lose this season.
http://www.hoopsworld.com/sunday-topic-most-underrated-acquisition/
Hope he keeps this up, tbh...
Jamal Crawford. As soon as the NBA’s free agency period began on midnight of July 1, the Los Angeles Clippers placed a call to Crawford and made plans to fly him out to California for a face-to-face meeting. The Clippers zeroed in on Crawford almost immediately and made it clear that signing the 32-year-old guard was their top priority. At the time, the Clippers were criticized for inking Crawford to a four-year deal since he had struggled during his one-year stint with the Portland Trail Blazers and because L.A. didn’t even consider other available shooting guards such as Ray Allen or Courtney Lee.
Now, Crawford is making the Clippers look very smart. He has outplayed every other offseason acquisition outside of James Harden, averaging 25.6 points off the bench for Los Angeles and shooting a career-high 53.4 percent from the field. He’s currently leading the Clippers in scoring, which is impressive considering he’s playing with two perennial All-Stars in Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Through three games, Crawford has the same Player Efficiency Rating (29.8) as LeBron James. :wow Making Crawford’s production even more impressive is the fact that he’s still adjusting to the change of scenery and trying to get acclimated with new teammates, coaches and plays.
While it’s still early, it’s clear that Crawford is a good fit in Los Angeles. He’s at his best when he’s playing on a contender and leading the second unit, which is why he was so effective during his two years with the Atlanta Hawks as well. Crawford was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2010 and it seems the award is his to lose this season.
http://www.hoopsworld.com/sunday-topic-most-underrated-acquisition/
Hope he keeps this up, tbh...