Wednesday brought the news of three players making a decision on their player options. Two decided to remain with their current team next season, while one long-time veteran has opted out and will become an Unrestricted Free Agent.
The two players who opted in are Wesley Johnson (Los Angeles Clippers) and Cory Joseph (Indiana Pacers). The one who declined his player option is Jamal Crawford (Minnesota Timberwolves).
Opt-in
- Wesley Johnson, Los Angeles Clippers
In an unsurprising move, Johnson has exercised his player option which will pay him $6,134,520 next season.
It is hard to fathom the small forward finding a team that would pay him that amount in the open market.
Johnson, who turns 31 on July 31, started 40 of his 74 appearances last season. In 20.1 Minutes Per Game, he averaged 5.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks. He shot below-average from the field (40.8 percent) and three-point territory (33.9 percent), both numbers being very similar to his career percentages over his first eight seasons.
Drafted fourth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2010, Johnson has never quite lived up to the billing of his high draft selection.
- Cory Joseph, Indiana Pacers
Joseph will be coming back to play a second season for Indiana as he will reportedly opt-in and be paid $7,945,000 next season.
Appearing in all 82 games this season, the point guard drew the start in 17 of them. In 27.0 minutes per game, Joseph posted averages of 7.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.2 blocks. Other than his rookie season where he played minimally, his 42.4 field goal percentage was his lowest. He did connect on 35.3 percent of his three-point tries, above his career mark of 32.9 percent.
Joseph will turn 27 on August 20.
Declined player option
- Jamal Crawford, Minnesota Timberwolves
The 17-year veteran Crawford has decided to decline his player option for next season with the Timberwolves that would have paid him $4,544,400. He will become an unrestricted free agent.
The 38-year-old appeared in 80 games for Minnesota, his first with the team.
Crawford’s 20.7 minutes per game were his lowest since his rookie season of 2000-01, and his scoring average of 10.3 was his lowest since his second season. He also averaged 1.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.5 steals and 0.1 blocks while shooting 41.5 percent from the field and 33.1 percent on threes.
The three-time Sixth Man of the Year ranks 30th in NBA history with 1,262 career games and 57th with 18,906 career points.
