The Jamal Crawford situation with the Los Angeles Clippers has definitely been an interesting one to follow. After being a huge part of the Clippers success over the past three seasons the Clippers rewarded Crawford by bringing in several bench guys that will likely eat at his minutes. Crawford has been involved in a lot of trade rumors this offseason and there were even reports that he wanted out but he is still with the team and is likely going nowhere. At this point Crawford has to accept the situation for what it is and he seems like he is okay with his role going into the 2015-16 season or at least he's saying the right things, according to Robert Morales of the Los Angeles Daily News.
The Clippers biggest problem a season ago was their depth and many people believe that is why they were eliminated before the Western Conference Finals. They seem to have solved that depth issue by bringing in a bunch of guys who should contribute off the bench. The problem with this is that their one bench performer from a year ago feels like the odd man out. Crawford had a year that is typical of himself last year and now may have his minutes reduced this year.
"I think it will be a lot of sacrifice, obviously, to sacrifice minutes, whatever it may be. Your common goal has to be winning," said Crawford.
Crawford said the right thing there but he has also made it clear earlier this offseason that he was unsure where he would fit in and that he wasn't thrilled that it seemed they forgot about him. The Clippers brought in Lance Stephenson, Paul Pierce and Wesley Johnson this offseason as potential backup wings (either Pierce or Johnson will start) so while Crawford will still likely have a role he won't get as much playing time as he is used to.
Crawford has primarily been a bench player in his career but he has still averaged more than 31 minutes per game and is used to being on the floor, and dominating, in the fourth quarter throughout his career. It remains to be seen whether he will still be on the floor in the fourth quarter but it seems certain his minutes will be reduced.
Last season Crawford averaged 15.8 points per game while shooting 40 percent from the field and 33 percent from three. Crawford is now 35 years old and entering his 16th NBA season which could have been a factor in the Clippers stocking up their bench but he can still score with the best of them so we will see if Doc Rivers is able to keep him happy enough to contribute the way he has the past three seasons.
