Nets Interested in Jordan Crawford?

Photo by Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports

As Boston Celtics' star point guard Rajon Rondo nears his return, Danny Ainge could possibly be looking to ship off the man who stood in Rondo's place this season:

With Rondo about 2B activated, Celtics are close 2 dealing Jordan Crawford. BK, Clips, Suns, Rockets, Warriors are interested
— Peter Vecsey (@PeterVecsey1) January 15, 2014

This is certainly an interesting proposal for Brooklyn. Jordan Crawford has done well (more or less) this season for Boston, winning Eastern Conference Player of the Week twice. He's started 35 times for the Celtics and is averaging 13.7 points, 5.7 assists and 3.1 rebounds.

When Crawford looks good, he looks pretty darn good – but that's the problem with Crawford; he's an inconsistent, streaky player.

In December, the 6'4" guard averaged 15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.9 threes per game. In January, though, he's averaging 14.3 points and 7.0 assists – but he's also only shooting 35.9% from the field and an awful 20.7% from beyond the arc, averaging 0.8 threes per game.

What you get with Jordan Crawford is a combo guard who plays without consistency, takes too many shots, is a below average defender, and has a history of selfish play and maturity issues. Though it appears he has settled down this season and has become a much better passer.

It's hard to imagine a trade for Crawford happening for a few reasons.

First, what assets do the Nets have that they would want to give up for him? It's up for debate whether or not the Celtics are in full-on tank mode, but they're not making the playoffs this year. They want draft picks and young assets, neither of which Brooklyn possesses. Would Boston really accept Tyshawn Taylor and Tornike Shengelia for him? That's about all they have to give. There's really not a lot that the Nets have that they would be willing to part with for the likes of Jordan Crawford.

Second, the Nets just don't need him. Shaun Livingston has emerged as a more-than-capable option in the backcourt for when Deron Williams can't play. Brooklyn has decent depth in terms of three-point shooters in Williams, Joe Johnson, Mirza Teletovic, Paul Pierce, Alan Anderson and Jason Terry. They don't need Crawford's 31.8% three-point shooting – he would just be a redundancy on this team.

Third, Crawford complained about his playing time with the Washington Wizards when he was benched upon the return of John Wall. The Celtics are obviously moving him to avoid those same complaints. Undoubtedly, Crawford would not be a starter for this team and would really just be competing for minutes with Terry. The Nets don't need a complainer weighing down their morale right now.

UPDATE, 12:03 p.m.: The Boston Celtics have traded Jordan Crawford to the Golden State Warriors.

Boston has traded guards Jordan Crawford and Marshawn Brooks to Golden State, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 15, 2014

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