NBA Rumors: Jamal Crawford To L.A. Lakers Receiving Support From Former Three-Time All-Star
All the big names in the 2019 NBA free agency class may have already found a new home, but there are still plenty of useful veterans who are available on the market, including former Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford. Almost two months since becoming an unrestricted free agent, Crawford is still finding an NBA team who will allow him to play for his 20th season in the league. At 39, no one can deny the fact that Crawford is already on the near end of his NBA career. However, the veteran shooting guard could still be a reliable contributor to an NBA team who needs a boost in their second unit.
One of the many people who believe that Jamal Crawford deserves to play in the 2019-20 NBA season is former three-time NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas. In an interview with Landon Buford, Arenas said that Crawford would be a great addition to teams who need outside shooting like the Los Angeles Lakers.
“I am surprised at this point in his career,” Arenas told Buford. “I hope he goes to a team like the Lakers because they need your outside shooting. They also need your creativity to provide more baskets, and they need another guard. I feel Jamal Crawford in that type of situation would be great for both sides.”
Though he is no longer in his prime, Jamal Crawford could still provide a huge help to the Lakers’ quest for an NBA championship title next season. Crawford would give the Lakers a reliable veteran who could take charge when their starters need to rest or suffer an injury. In his 19 years in the NBA, Crawford averaged 14.6 points while shooting 41.9 percent from the field and 34.0 percent from beyond the arc.
Ice Cube is not messing around. @TheBig3 is looking to add:
? Melo
? Vince Carter
? Jamal Crawford
? Dwyane Wade and more in the upcoming seasons.We talked to @IceCube about how he'll make it happen: https://t.co/Ru0BsSvfF7 pic.twitter.com/quWi7fv0jV
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) August 19, 2019
As of now, the Lakers are keeping an eye on another veteran wingman – Andre Iguodala, who was traded by the Golden State Warriors to the Memphis Grizzlies this summer. However, if the Grizzlies insist on trading Iguodala instead of buying out his contract, Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report believes that Jamal Crawford “would be quite the consolation prize as the best option currently available” for the Lakers.
Gilbert Arenas’ wish for Jamal Crawford definitely has a realistic chance of happening this summer, especially knowing that Lakers superstars LeBron James once had an interest in becoming teammates with the veteran shooting guard. When Crawford became an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2017, Buckley revealed that James tried to recruit him to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
