Another Hawks dilemma: Pay Jamal Crawford or dump him?
Here we see Jamal Crawford in a moment of exultation. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
An unsatisfying offseason has the potential to turn unsavory. In the same summer the Hawks made Joe Johnson the priciest free-agent signing and Larry Drew the cheapest head-coaching hire, they must now deal with Jamal Crawford. This isn’t what any doctor — from Dr. J to Dr. Jack Ramsey — would have ordered.
According to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, Crawford and his agent are expected to meet with general manager Rick Sund this week. Crawford is thought to want one of two things: To sign a contract extension before the new season commences or to be traded forthwith. Given that his was the happiest Hawks story of a season that ended unhappily, Crawford must be taken seriously. Given that these are the Hawks, who are so cheap they haven’t yet fleshed out their roster, he shouldn’t hold his breath.
Yes, cheap. Even after sinking $120 million into Joe Johnson, the Hawks keep giving us reason to doubt their long-avowed Commitment To Excellence. They could have hired an established NBA head coach to replace Mike Woodson and wound up promoting Drew, who’d been Woodson’s assistant all along. They could have spent significant money to find another big man, and instead they’ve attempted to make do with Josh Powell and another episode of the Jason Collins Saga. (For late tuners-in, Collins was on the Hawks’ roster all last season, though not so you noticed.)
It’s unclear what Crawford really thinks is apt to happen if he does deliver a pay-me-more-or-trade-me-now demand. Because the Hawks aren’t apt to pay anyone more. Public statements notwithstanding, the Atlanta Spirit seems uninterested in paying one in-the-red cent of luxury tax. Beyond that, there’s a more pressing matter: What to do with Al Horford, who means even more to this franchise?
Horford can become a restricted free agent at season’s end. The Hawks would prefer he not test the market because they know full well he’d be coveted from sea to shining sea. If any Hawk is apt to receive a contract extension before Halloween, it’s Horfy. There’s almost no chance two Hawks will be offered preseason extensions at this late date.
So, if Sund doesn’t hand Crawford a new contract, what does the GM do? Trade him? Even though any attempt to shed a disgruntled player creates a buyer’s market? Even though the Hawks would be pressed to get anything comparable to Crawford in return? Even though the strength of this team headed into 2010-11 figured to be its continuity?
Loading ...On the other hand … do you want a disgruntled player in a locker room not overrun with vocal leaders? (Horford is the Hawk most apt to speak, and if he chooses not to accept an extension he’ll be facing contractual issues of his own.) The issue of Johnson’s impending free agency became a major story last season, and Crawford is 10 times more talkative than J.J.
Yes, the Hawks did draft a shooting guard in Jordan Crawford, but 26 players were taken ahead of him and there’s no assurance he’s not the 21st Century Roy Marble. This rookie cannot be seen as rotation-ready, meaning the Hawks can’t just trade one J. Crawford and hand his workload — the NBA’s sixth man of the year averaged 31 minutes a night — to another J. Crawford.
There was a time when the Hawks seemed a rousing success story: A team of young guys growing up together and learning to win. What we’re seeing is that NBA success carries a higher and higher price. A franchise cannot hold its core together for years on end without paying dearly, and paying dearly essentially means overpaying. The Hawks overpaid Johnson because they had no real alternative: To lose him would have meant losing much of the credibility they’ve spent the past decade trying to re-establish.
The price for credibility, alas, was flexibility. The Hawks have almost none. To give Jamal Crawford what he wants would be throwing more big money at a shooting guard already past 30 in the same offseason that has seen them lavish a six-year contract on a 29-year-old who plays the same position. To trade Crawford would be to weaken the team he helped lift from 47 victories to 53. There might be a happy ending to this latest Hawks tempest, but I’ll be darned if I see it.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
172 comments Add your comment
Olik
August 30th, 2010
9:37 am
“Hi Denver, this is Rick. How ’bout this: I’ll give you my #1 pick next year, Jamal, and any combination of Josh, Marvin, and my whole bench – your choice. You give me Carmelo and anything else you want to give me to make the dollars work. Everybody wins.”
BugKiller
August 30th, 2010
9:38 am
Making Johnson the highest paid player IN the NBA in a year when ALL free agents took less money just shows you how much a joke the Dispirit is, Mark.
WHY didn’t they call his bluff??? NO ONE was going to pay him 120 million. NO ONE was going to pay him 115 or 110 million. SO WHY didn’t they call his bluff???
And then WHY didn’t the Hawks even call Denver to do a mutual sign and trade for Melo???
The Hawks could have traded BOTH Joe Johnson AND Marvin Williams, two playoff disappointments (and for Williams, a disappointment all around) for Carmelo Anthony and Nene, getting the on-court leader they were missing with Johnson, and a big man in need of a new team and a fresh start.
WHY, Mark??? Carmelo Anthony in Atlanta just makes too much damn sense.
Instead, we’re left with Droopy Dog, who is NOT going to be happy playing in any offense that’s not called the Iso-Joe.
Melo would have put people in the seats. Melo would have sold out Phillips and put money in our terrible owner’s pockets.
Melo would have made this team a contender with Miami and Chicago and Boston. Now, Atlanta, like Cleveland, is just an also-ran who’ll be lucky to get a 5th or 6th seed.
Jt
August 30th, 2010
9:38 am
I hate it, but I think the Hawks had to overpay to keep JJ. They could not let him go- it would have been a step backward- there were no alternatives. Jamal is under contract- the Hawks do not have to do anything with him. I cannot imagine a player of his character giving anything but maximum effort every night. But, then again, even at 54 years old, I am still sometimes naive
NCBravesFan
August 30th, 2010
9:39 am
RambleOn84’s post just dropped a question in my head – how are season ticket sales going this offseason? If I was a season ticket holder, I’d be very concerned about the “changes” that have been made this offseason after the Hawks’ playoff performance.
As for Jamal, I don’t begrudge his stance, especially with the CBA coming up. That said, I would say trade him if the Hawks won’t extend him (which I seriously doubt they will).
Joey
August 30th, 2010
9:40 am
Where is Joe Johnson? Professional sports teams all have stars who take less money or restructure their big contracts to help their teams acquire or hold on to players. Brady, Manning, Bird, Chipper and many, many others have done this.
Joe doesn’t care?
robdawg08
August 30th, 2010
9:40 am
No one was going to pay JJ $80 million either. The Hawks were bidding him up against themselves. No other team was in the running.
Add Stockton & Malone to the twosies.
T.Shell
August 30th, 2010
9:41 am
Barkley never won a title. I would not pay him until the end of next season. He can’t tank if he wants to get paid next year.
robdawg08
August 30th, 2010
9:44 am
Whatever happened to honoring the contract you are under ? Worry about next year next year. If you are worth it then you will be rewarded in due time.
robdawg08
August 30th, 2010
9:46 am
Yeah the Hawks are gonna draft another 6′7″ forward next year anyway that will be another Marvin Williams. 6 points in 25 minutes.
Swingman912
August 30th, 2010
9:48 am
While I do agree that Jordan Crawford shouldn’t be expected to duplicate the numbers of Jamal, i will say it’s worth a shot. Jamal was the gunner. In the preseason he came in trying to be a even keel PG. Woody quickly reminded him of why he was brought in. He’s a scorer, plain and simple. High volume shooter who isnt scared to take a big shot…or any shot for that matter…So is Jordan Crawford,(see K-State game) and he’s 5-6 years younger and about $8-$9mil cheaper…Accept the rookie mistakes, but give him his chance….and perhaps get something valuable(like a true SF backup) for Jamal’s expiring contract. We appreciate his contribution and we understand his reasoning(new CBA), but offering a 30Y/O player a multi-year contract when you already spent you life’s savings and your children’s college tuition to Ivy League schools to another 30y/o guy at the same position…..AND you have an All-Star big man(PF or C) who’s an UFA at the end of the season…….just trade him…………CHUUUUUUUCH
Renata
August 30th, 2010
9:48 am
Arthur Blank….Please oh Please buy the Hawks.
Dr. Warren
August 30th, 2010
9:49 am
Pro sports have become such a drag. Especially in Atlanta.
Renata
August 30th, 2010
9:50 am
Dr. Warren.
College football is the biggest waste of time. NO TRUE PLAYOFF. How can anyone watch that.
GT Alum
August 30th, 2010
9:51 am
The funny thing, Mark. I think you were one of the ones arguing that the Hawks had to re-sign JJ to send a message they would pay big money for big players and they’re committed to winning. So, now they owe JJ about $120M over the next 6 seasons, but they still have the cheap tag and their commitment to winning is still greatly questioned.
PMC
August 30th, 2010
9:52 am
You’re kidding right. Pay the man his money. Who is going to hit the big shot at the end of the game Joe Johnson?
PMC
August 30th, 2010
9:54 am
And paying Jamal Crawford will be admitting just how much they overpaid for a guy who has PROVEN he’s nothing better than a great #2.
I hope Joe Johnson enjoys being richly mediocre.
GT Alum
August 30th, 2010
9:56 am
Renata, even though the whole determination of national titles is still pretty unsatisfying, the great thing about college football is many of the players aren’t prima donnas whose biggest worry isn’t their next contract. A bunch of them won’t even make it to the NFL. These players especially play purely for the love of the game. College football might not be played at as high a level as the NFL, but the level of excitement and passion is fantastic.
PMC
August 30th, 2010
10:01 am
NFL players love playing the game too. They get money to practice and to put thier bodies back toegther after they crush eachother on the field.
The owners should go out and take a couple of shots just prior to the new negociations.
Renata
August 30th, 2010
10:02 am
GT Alum,
Who are you talking about. That is all big college football is anymore. Sure you have small schools like Ga Southern but GT, UGA in this little area is LOADED in prima donnas. And the excitement and passion is only at a high level in the south. Most of the south has lacked pro sports until the last 15 yrs. Minus Atlanta. I am sure you love Tech. But go anywhere else in the country and PRO anything rules. And the passion is just as big as college football is in the south. Big money is going to ruin college football. ESPN/ABC/ Nick Saban and others are going to bring it down. The NCAA is going to play a big part. The no playoff thing is just the kicker.
PD
August 30th, 2010
10:25 am
Hawks should re-sign Crawford and Horford this offseason. Rick Sund has not proved much to me so far. He did not want to draft a big man because they were all considered project big men( at 53 they could have taken Whiteside or Alabi). To address their bigs problem they sign Josh Powell, Collins and possibly Etan Thomas. I believe these are all 1 year guys. So the bench is always going to be in a state of flux at the big position outside of Zaza. Honestly, I hope all of this works and we can make some noise in the playoffs.
Hawks Looking To Retain Horford « TheUpperCardNetwork.com
August 30th, 2010
10:29 am
[...] wants a contract extension or a trade out of Atlanta, the Hawks still have another issue at hand. Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal Constitution writes about Crawford’s situation, and how it relates to the 2011 free agency of all-star [...]
PD
August 30th, 2010
10:30 am
I think it is true that JJ would have bolted if offered less than the max. But a feasible number to keep this team flexible should have been 90 million 6 years. The Hawks would have been signing all the guys they needed all summer if they negotiated Joe to that number. We probably would have had a proven coach and maybe Shaq.
Please no NFL or college football on this blog. We don’t pollute your blogs with Hawks talk.
Stoned Mountain
August 30th, 2010
10:30 am
Mark, you should have said Doug “More ice cream pleez” Edwards.
PD
August 30th, 2010
10:33 am
Maybe the Hawks should piss Crawford off and trade him back to Golden State for Biedrins
steve brown
August 30th, 2010
10:33 am
Waiting for Sund. He was going to study the roster and then make his moves. Jamal was the only plus move made and now it has become problematic. They even spent the 2nd round pick on a complete unknown (except to our ubiquitous scouting staff) and haven’t gotten his release from his foreign team (thank you lord). If we due get a back up center (apparently one who recently went through heart surgery so that we will at least know he has heart) Drew seems to get the credit not Sund. Still waiting for Sund to make some magic or at least something to get excited about or at least something. Could it be he and Obama were on vacation together-Obama at point guard-now there is a win win, the country is freed from his leadership and he brings change to the Hawks-35-40 wins.
PD
August 30th, 2010
10:34 am
Trade Crawford and Marvin for Melo if they cannot settle
mountain_jim
August 30th, 2010
10:36 am
Hey PD, the Falcons are on track to win it all way before the Hawks, who will not finish as high as last year until they rebuild again imho. Overpaying for the level of talent on the team, and not spending over the cap to fix the roster, is the cause.
Besides, the owners need to hear from and know about us long-time fans (35 years) and former season ticket holders, and how disgusted we have become with their ownership and bad stewardship of this franchise. I understand they are financially strapped, they need to really try and sell the team for until the Hawks get ownership with deep pockets and a clue they Hawks will never make it past the 2nd round, or apparently even win a 2nd round game.
Selling the draft pick, never bringing over the Euro players, and not paying for a decent center this offseason are all running us former fans off. Sund needs to use this Jamal situation to pull a rabbit out of his hat in a big trade that includes a good big man, imho, to have a chance to bring fans like me back around.
Halsey
August 30th, 2010
10:41 am
The Hawks need to make sure they will be able to re-sign Horford. They don’t want to re-sign everyone else and then not be able to afford to keep Horford.
Taylor Hanson
August 30th, 2010
10:43 am
How would the Hawks afford Melo? We are now bound for eternity to Joe and only Joe.
Buddy Grizzard
August 30th, 2010
10:44 am
“A weird summer for sure, Khao$. They kept Joe Johnson and still nobody seems thrilled about it.”
Not sure what’s weird about it. The Hawks will MAYBE get two good years out of that contract. I doubt Hawks fans would be gushing about it even if he HADN’T said he doesn’t care if the fans show up.
PD
August 30th, 2010
10:44 am
mountain_jim…….I agree with your ownership issues with the Hawks. The Falcons seem to get a pass every season because the people in Georgia are more NFL than NBA fans. I am fine with that bias that lives everywhere depending on what you like. Give me a break though……..The Falcons are not gonna win anything anytime soon. I think this team is still fatally flawed in the secondary and at the quarterback position. I think we have seen the best of Matt Ryan. I hope he proves me wrong.
@WreckBuZZ
August 30th, 2010
10:45 am
This is a dumb argument. Sign the guy to an extension that does not increase his 2010-2011 season salary. Jamal Crawford is a tradable commodity. So sign him now and worry about how he fits into the salary structure of 2011 and beyond next offseason. There would be a market for Crawford to contending teams that need a bench scorer. Any number of teams could use him. So there’s no need to go all panicky about this. Keep him happy now and worry about next year…next year. To me this is a non story.
gadawgs
August 30th, 2010
10:45 am
Who cares? I refuse to invest in this team emotionally or financially until they get new ownership that will do whats necessary to win.
5150 POAD
August 30th, 2010
10:53 am
Mark are you checking my posts? HAHAH Ok. With the first games in NCAA Football I guess you will start the year with a winning record of picking game. Pick 10 winners to get ahead early. Can’t wait to hear your Winners for this weekends games.
Khao$
August 30th, 2010
10:57 am
Because the Hawks don’t have the following of a UGA or even the Braves/Falcons for that matter, people are sort of blase towards the way the ASG does business. However, for diehards like many of us on this page, the constant barrage of bad news and/or lack of activity is frustrating. In any other market, this ownership group would be raked over the coals. I’m sorry, but after what I saw in the 2nd round vs. Orlando, changes needed to be made (besides telling Woody adios). We lost by the largest margin in playoff history. And when you think about some of the bad teams that have made it to the playoffs, that’s a huge blemish against a team that was the 3rd seed in its conference.
I can’t blame Sund solely because in truth, you can only do what your bosses allow you to do.
Dr. Warren
August 30th, 2010
10:59 am
The millions these guys make should be illegal, especially at their age, a stage when most young people are working in low-to-mid level jobs, sometimes two jobs at once. These guys are paid better than 99.9% of the fans, many of whom do far more important and difficult work. The owners are to blame, sure, but so is our out-of-whack value system, which hopefully will start to realign during this recession. Perhaps enforced by legislation, the leagues should restructure with strict salary caps, and if the players don’t like it, then they have other choices, such as taking their educations seriously and getting real jobs like the rest of us, or going to Europe like Childress. I don’t feel sorry for Crawford because he has to settle for millions of dollars even though he “comes to play every night” out on the court. The fact that underpaid journalists are justifying the entitlement of these overpaid young people shows how much the society has lost sight of the big picture. What is the big picture? That entertainment and the stars that circulate within it should be diversions at best. That excellence in education and non-political public service should be celebrated more than the addled comings and goings of uneducated actresses and heiresses with cocaine addictions, or basketball straw men who take their talents to South Beach, or owners whose hundreds of millions could literally rebuild the country rather than supply 20-something athletes with Lamborghinis and McMansions. From my vantage point here in the juggernaut that is China, I read about all of this narcissistic nonsense–after all, it’s usually featured center stage on the front pages of MSNBC and CNN. And I say to myself, we’re in trouble. We’re in big trouble. Jamal Crawford? Let him walk. And while the hapless Spirit Group figures out how to function without him, may I suggest we all pick up a good book–and instruct our children to do the same?
Gary O
August 30th, 2010
11:11 am
robdawg08,
The Knicks and Bulls were prepared to offer JJ 5 years, $93 mil. This was the max they could offer. If the Hawks offered him 5 years, $93 mil, then they risk losing him, so they offered 6 years, $124 mil.
Did they overpay? Yes they did. But it was either that, or let JJ go, promote Jamal, and hope he fills JJ’s shoes. I dont think Jamal can fill JJ’s shoes.
Mark,
Jamal should have been traded once JJ got resigned, Jordan was drafted, and Mo Evans said he was staying. I think between JJ, Mo Evans, and Jordan, the SG position would have been fine, given LD’s motion offense.
i_am_soulstar
August 30th, 2010
11:13 am
He’s under contract. If you can’t improve the team through a trade, then just play him. I see his point though. Reigning 6th man of the year, coming into a contract year. His value will never be this high again. But still, he’s under contract, so just play him.
For Real
August 30th, 2010
11:13 am
Mark: If you have any connection to ASG please hand them these trades so they can put the team up for sale:
Trade #1
Jamal Crawford and Marvin Williams for Carmelo Anthony
Trade #2
Mike Bibby, Al Horford and ZaZa for Andrew Bynum
Trade #3
Josh Smith for Chris Paul
New lineup:
PG: Chris Paul
SG: Joe Johnson
SF: Carmelo Anthony
PF: Mid-Level Exeception
C: Andrew Bynum
The dollars works for all three trades and what new owner would not find this time attractive?
db11
August 30th, 2010
11:17 am
Pay the guy that effectively tells his fan base to kiss off… Don’t pay the guy who has said from the beginning “I’m happy to be here…” He is not asking for the farm. They gave Bibby 3 years when his decline at the time was obvious. Craw has at least 3 good years left in him… It is becoming increasingly frustrating to be a Hawks fan…
robdawg08
August 30th, 2010
11:18 am
Bullcrap that the Bulls & Knicks were offering $93 million to JJ. That’s what HIS camp was reporting. Its easy for your agent to say “THe Raptors are offering $93 for 5 years can you go a 6th to keep JJ /”. They played the Hawks owith words gainst no real offers.
MightyQuinn
August 30th, 2010
11:21 am
This is the next domino to fall after the JJ contract. The next will be Horford, and in two years, the Hawks may be JJ and a team of cheap help. And no playoffs. Then JJ will demand to be traded, the Hawks will have to eat a ton of his bloated contract to unload him, and we’ll be back to 15-20 wins a season. Thus saith The MightyQuinn. So let it be written. So let it be done!
Ted M
August 30th, 2010
11:23 am
Marvin Williams has been the downfall of the Hawks, even though they’re making the playoffs now, first with his waste of the second overall draft pick then with is contract.
truthspitter
August 30th, 2010
11:26 am
Rick Sund is a bum. He killed the growth of this team by resigning Marvin mainly, and Bibby and Zaza on a smaller level. Marvin should have been the guy they did a Chillz type sign and trade for, meaning they should have let Marvin walk for a 1st rd pick and trade exception and we would have been much better off considering the best case scenario is that Marvin develops. The guy has been in the league 5+ years and some idiots are still waiting on him to start to develop.
On the other hand, can’t cry over spoiled milk. We are screwed, there is absolutely no way that we can resign Al and resign Jamal without going over the luxury mark next season. We will be at $65.5 Million after resigning Al because he is getting a Boozer type deal from someone, that means he will be starting at about $13.5 million in 2011-2012, and we also have to pick up the option on Teague. That means 8 players, needing to sign 5 more with less than $5 mill left over, that means 2nd rd picks and minimum level players will fill out this roster next year. That means you better hope Teague and Jordan Crawford are some good.
Lastly, all we can do is hope for a trade were we get some top notch player back and make it to the Finals. Maybe then the ASG would go into luxury to bring the team back, but we really don’t have the assets to get Carmelo without giving up Al, Joe, or Josh. We are stuck with this mediocre bunch, just face it. Crawford is the least of our problems.
G'Vegas Dawg
August 30th, 2010
11:27 am
$120 Million for a bum and then we don’t have enough $$ left to sign the true difference maker. The Hawks are committed to excellence about as much as Lindsey Lohan is committed to sobriety.
GT Alum
August 30th, 2010
11:32 am
Khao$, ASG does get a pretty good raking over the coals, more so than Liberty Media does even. But what good does it do? Incompetent ownership gets slammed in plenty of places, yet the ownership usually doesn’t change, and the owners don’t usually do any better job of running the team. There was plenty of venom directed at ASG early in the offseason, and some optimism regarding rumors they were trying to sell, but most people have just realized that not much is going to change about the way this team is run, at least not this year, so there’s not much sense in getting up in arms.
However, unless they make a major move, they could sell even fewer tickets this season than they did last season, which could convince them that trying to run this team is a losing proposition and push them to sell. Either that, or it could convince them to try to move the team to another market.
Saint Sparky
August 30th, 2010
11:33 am
Trade him ! Now we can at least get something in return ! My suggestion: trade Jamal and Marvin Williams to Denver for Carmelo Anthony. The contracts fit (Melo 27 mil, Jamal 7 mil and Marvin 10 mil), we would just need to find a way to extend Melo’s contract. What a team that would be: JJ, Melo, JSmooth and Horford ! Probably won’t happen as it would be too logical and smart, but we can put it out there and maybe Rick might consider !
reality
August 30th, 2010
11:35 am
Why are all these idiots covered in “sleeve” tattoos now? What a moronic look to have.
GT Alum
August 30th, 2010
11:36 am
For real, Chris Paul isn’t going anywhere. The reason the Paul trade rumors started were because New Orleans had another good PG in Collison. However, they traded Collison a few weeks ago, so they’re pretty much committed to Paul now.
King Teezo
August 30th, 2010
11:42 am
Truth, I hear you…The JJ contract is what it is, either we had to pay up for him or be the same team minus JJ b/c the Hawks COULDN’T use that money to sign anyone else…
But resigning Marvin (4yrs 7mil), Zaza(3yrs 4mil) and Bibby(2yrs 5 1/2mil) was the worst and nobody wants them dudes with the numbers on their contracts…Complain about JJ all you want, but I’ve been complaining about these contracts since they signed em…
Crawford is exactly the least of our problems, HE’S UNDER CONTRACT…
Worry about what you gonna do with Horford first n foremost…Peace…