Jamal Crawford: Exactly What The New York Knicks Need?

Earlier today, reports surfaced that the New York Knicks have begun expressing interest in trading for Los Angeles Clippers’ shooting guard Jamal Crawford.

It’s pretty well-known that the Knicks didn’t exactly have the offseason that they were hoping for. Drafting Kristaps Porzingis was the first move by team president Phil Jackson. The reason being because Porzingis is a prospect that requires time to develop and the Knicks simply don’t have time.

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In the city that never sleeps, they’ve gone through enough agony for their team to be relevant once again. Missing out on the playoffs two years in a row has caused chaos in New York.

One thing with the roster hasn’t changed, and that is Carmelo Anthony still being the guy. The Knicks were able to add a couple of solid pieces in Arron Afflalo and Robin Lopez in free agency, but they don’t compare to the players they first pursued like LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre Jordan, and Wesley Matthews.

Having Jamal Crawford’s name brought up in possible trade rumors to the Knicks would be exactly what they need to help their chances of improving last year’s franchise-low 17 wins. Last season, Crawford averaged 15.8 points and 2.5 assists off the bench for the Clippers. Especially in the playoffs, Crawford was the only scoring threat the Clippers had coming off the bench.

If the Knicks were able to get Crawford, he would continue to come off the bench as he has for the majority of his career. Besides Langston Galloway, Crawford would be the only option to score especially in isolation situations.

Last season, 52.4 percent of Crawford’s shots came from pullups and 27.8 percent of his shots came in between three to six dribbles.

In other words, he has the ability to create offense by simply breaking down his defender. It doesn’t mean Crawford is getting all the way to the paint when he crosses a defender over. He is most efficient when a defender is right in his face believe it or not. He shot 40.2 percent when his defender was 0-2 feet from him. The Knicks don’t have anyone that can do such things on the roster right now besides Anthony.

Jerian Grant will most likely be the point guard coming off the bench. Grant showed in summer league that he has the ability to find open teammates and create scoring opportunities as well. Crawford killed defenses last season playing with Chris Paul who effectively executes kick-out passes to open shooters in his sleep. Crawford shot 41.4 percent from the field including 38 percent from three when using no dribbles in the offense.

Over the years, NBA fans have seen how critical it is to have a solid bench if a team wants to truly contend. This isn’t assuming the Knicks will be contenders if they land Crawford because they still have an extensive amount of work to do, but completing a move like this will ensure Knicks’ fans that Phil Jackson indeed does have a plan and that the agony won’t be around much longer.

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