Right before the 2009 NBA Draft the Golden State Warriors sent Jamal Crawford and his sick handles to Hotlanta in exchange for Speedy Claxton and Acie Law (both now very tradable for something very interesting):
- BREAKING NEWS: Warriors and Hawks closing in on Jamal Crawford for Acie Law and Speedy Claxton swap
- Exploring the rumored Crawford for Claxton and Law Trade: CBA and salary implications
Good luck to JC in Hotlanta!
Jump for the Q's from SBN Atlanta Hawks brother blog Peachtree Hoops! Welcome to Atlanta- And now I give you the Jamal Crawford half-week.
Our friends over at Peachtree Hoops are Asking GSoM:
1. How does Crawford help a team win?
2. How does he help a team lose?
3. What do you miss most about Jamal Crawford?
4. Was his defense really that bad?
5. Why did your team get rid of him?
6. Was Jamal Crawford a main reason your team did not make the playoffs?
7. Every Warriors fan that comes onto Peachtree Hoops has made it clear that we should not be too excited about Jamal Crawford. Why is that? Are y'all just into hurting feelings?
8. What grade do you give the Warriors for this trade?
9. Any other thoughts?
Post your answers to 1-9 in the comments.
My 20 cents:
1. JC brings class to the locker room and a very cool and professional personality. On the harwood he's very respectable on the offensive end. He might have the sickest handles in the association this side of Allen Iverson- although he sadly doesn't use them enough to get to the bucket often settling for wild jumpers. JC's periodic high octane and unstoppable scoring outbursts plus his respectable passing and court vision make him the ideal 6th man.
2. By playing ZERO defense. There's a reason he won the 2008-2009 WDWY (Worst Defensive Warrior of the Year) digital trophy.
3. I'll miss the smoothness that JC brought to an organization that is very hard to respect. I'll miss those random 50 point games and him breaking fools ankles just because he can. The fall-down-drawing-a-foul-while-jacking-up-a- crazy-trey was pretty entertaining too. On most nights on the offensive end JC was a pleasure to watch.
Man I couldn't wait to see JC go for 50 again so we could change the sign to "50 + 50"!
4. Yes.
5. Larry Riley and Don Nelson shipped Crawford basically to reduce the guard glut on the Warriors. I don't think it was really anything personal. There just wasn't going to be enough minutes to go around in the backcourt for another combo guard that doesn't play defense. I mean the Warriors already have Monta Ellis.
For all the drama surrounding Nellie reportedly trying to force JC to opt out of his contract I actually think he was trying to do Crawford a favor. Remember this was done behind closed doors. Nelson was trying to be up front with Crawford by helping him avoid a potentially unpleasant trade destination. Luckily JC ended up on a good rising playoff squad and the Warriors (potentially) got 2 very nice expiring contracts.
Of course what did the Warriors do with their 2009 draft selection? Draft combo guard Stephen Curry. Best player available of course, but I don't doubt for a second that Jamal Crawford will put up better numbers next year than Curry in his rookie season.
6. No that would be this guy.
7. JC should do just fine for the Hawks. I like this trade a lot for them. They added a great 6th man to fill in for Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson. JC + Bibby and JJ ain't bad at all.
8. If the Warriors actually use the expiring Speedy Claxton and Acie Law contracts to net a big fish or at least one that can do some damage it's an A. If not, it was another meaningless move in a long line of silly salary dumps (read: Antawn Jamison, Jason Richardson, and Baron Davis in free agency), so F.
I'd give the Hawks an B+ for the trade. Crawford isn't quite worth the $20 million remaining on his contract, but it just might work on the Hawks. It's worth a shot although it's an "expensive" shot glass. Not bad.
9. Here's a good parallel for Atlanta Hawks fans (not everything is possible here, but just play along): Let's say after the Hawks 2008 fun playoff run that ended an 8 year playoff drought they traded Joe Johnson that offseason for an extremely raw, non-NBA ready rookie in Brandan Wright. Then they still have a very exciting 2k8-2k9 season, but barely miss the playoffs. In the summer following that 9th place finish they let Josh Smith go to the Charlotte Bobcats. Then in a panic move they splurge on the injury-prone Gerald Wallace.
Why would anyone be so dumb to make these moves and breakup a fun playoff team in a town that's just suffered such a long and painful playoff drought? Let me direct your question towards Robert Rowell, Chris Mullin, and Chris Cohan.