Jamal Crawford's real status with the Los Angeles Clippers was recently a much talked about topic, seeing that the sixth man who frequently came off the bench last season may become the odd man out of the rotation for the coming season.
With new recruits Paul Pierce and Lance Stephenson in tow, Crawford's minutes will certainly be reduced. And so rumors tying Crawford to other teams cropped up, but Clippers head coach Doc Rivers practically quashes all that heading into training camp, which starts on Sept. 29.
"I've heard all the rumors about Jamal going other places," Rivers said via CBS Sports. "Jamal's a Clipper and I would be very surprised if he's not a Clipper by the season's end."
Convinced? Well, there are some who are not 100% sold on the idea. For one, how will diminished minutes fare with Crawford, someone who has been used to logging long minutes but settled for lesser ones to join the Clips?
Then again and with Crawford now at 35, Rivers could have a point. Why would Crawford demand for a trade and try his luck with other teams when he already has one that allegedly claims that they still need him?
Looking at the roster and heading into the coming season, Crawford may end up fighting for minutes to stay on the floor. This means less room for errors, seeing that he will likely ride the bench if he does not perform accordingly with the unit on the floor.
For now, it seems Rivers is bent on keeping Crawford. We haven't seen the Clippers take the floor yet and all that could change once the new NBA season opens this coming October.
The Clippers technically have a full house coming into the season and for perhaps the right price or package, do not count out a trade for Crawford completely just yet.
