Because of what anticipates to be a very tight market in free agency this summer, many players around the league are opting into the final year of their contracts including Jeremy Lin, Wes Matthews, Cory Joseph and Wes Johnson, but Jamal Crawford has never been one to follow a crowd.
The 38-year-old shooter has decided to opt out of the final year of his contract and $4.5 million next season, according to Chris Haynes of ESPN:
“Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jamal Crawford will decline his 2018-19 player option to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, league sources tell ESPN.”
I get that Crawford is 38 and may want to be able to choose where he plays next season if he feels that the Wolves aren’t enough of a contender to compete for an NBA title at this point in his NBA career, but I really doubt he garners that much money on the open market or even a multi-year deal at this point.
Crawford still has the ability to get hot and make an array of difficult shots even at this point in his career, averaging 10.3 points in 20 minutes per game this season, but he has always been a dreadful defender and an inefficient scorer and his minutes would be better off being spread out elsewhere.
I see him ending up with a veteran’s minimum contract on a capped out contender that needs to fill out a few extra roster spots with veteran experience.
