A Jamal Crawford trade has just taken place for the Atlanta Hawks. Crawford returns to Atlanta as part of a three-team deal that has landed Danilo Gallinari with the Los Angeles Clippers. The Hawks helped serve as a facilitator in the exchange, taking on Crawford's salary and putting the energetic guard back on the court for the 2017-18 NBA season. Hawks fans have fond memories of what Crawford was able to do during his time with the franchise.
The LA Clippers worked hard to acquire Gallinari in free agency but needed to end up making a sign-and-trade deal with the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets didn't want to take back any salaries, though, so they brought in the Hawks to help as a third team. To get the third team to be interested, the Clippers and Nuggets agreed that the Atlanta Hawks would receive Jamal Crawford, Diamond Stone, and a future first-round pick.
Is the Jamal Crawford contract an expensive one?
Jamal Crawford's contract has two seasons left on it, with the guard earning roughly $14.3 million in the coming NBA season and then $14.5 million the following year. The second year of the deal is non-guaranteed, though, giving the Atlanta Hawks an opportunity to opt out of it before June 21, 2018. By doing so, the team would have to pay him $3 million, allowing Crawford to then become a free agent.
Crawford was already the shooting guard (off the bench) for the Atlanta Hawks during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 NBA seasons. He played in 155 games over those two years, averaging 16.1 points, 3.1 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game. His best year was in the 20091-0 NBA season when Crawford averaged 18.0 points, 3.0 assists, and 2.5 rebounds per game.
During his extensive NBA career, Crawford has been named the Sixth Man of the Year three times.
What else have the Atlanta Hawks done this NBA offseason?
There have been a lot of Atlanta Hawks rumors this offseason, beginning with the possibility that the Miami Heat would sign Paul Millsap away from the franchise. This Jamal Crawford trade is a good bargain for the Hawks, as it will give the team another good scorer off the bench.
Many NBA analysts see this as a rebuilding year for the franchise, so even in the worst-case scenario, the Hawks just acquired an additional first-round pick by accepting Crawford back.
In addition to this Jamal Crawford trade, the Atlanta Hawks have also signed John Collins to a multi-year contract and allowed Paul Millsap, Jose Calderon, Kris Humphries, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ersan Ilyasova, and Thabo Sefolosha to become free agents during the NBA offseason. The Hawks have a number of openings on the roster that will now need to be filled, but the team certainly has the salary cap space to do it. Expect many more NBA rumors to include the Hawks before the next season gets started.
