Jamal Crawford was recently a part of a trade involving the Los Angeles Clippers, Atlanta Hawks and Denver Nuggets with the end goal seeing Danilo Gallinari head to LA. Crawford was included in the deal to help the Clippers include Gallinari’s new contract and he was traded to the Hawks, a team currently rebuilding. With Crawford’s time in the NBA limited, joining a team headed for the lottery was not in his best interest.
After it was learned that Atlanta would honor Crawford’s request of a buyout, many playoff contenders expressed their interested. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards were all in the running to get Crawford but at the end of the day, he’s going to accept a deal with the new-look Minnesota Timberwolves.
Jamal Crawford is in serious talks to sign with the Minnesota Timberwolves once he clears waivers, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 8, 2017
Sources: Crawford plans to sign with Minnesota on a two-year, $8.9M deal, with second year player option, once he clears waivers. https://t.co/q8kfKfQLXW
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 8, 2017
Timberwolves getting Crawford to presumably come off the bench is a big get for the finalizing their rotation. He can be the main reserve ball-handler with the Wolves when newly signed Jeff Teague hits the bench. He can also play alongside Teague if Jimmy Butler or Andrew Wiggins needs a break and provide some much-needed shooting to their lineup.
