Jae Crowder on the Move?
Jazz, Celtics engage on Gordon Hayward sign-and-trade for Jae Crowder. Latest story with @ramonashelburne https://t.co/E9Eaa4t829
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn)
Is Woj getting his groove back? It’s hard to say, but if this news is true he might be in the clear. ANYWAYS, apparently the Celtics are engaged with the Jazz on a sign-and-trade for Gordon Hayward involving Jae Crowder, according to Woj.
Since the Celtics need to shed some cap in order to sign Hayward, trading Crowder makes the most sense out of the three guys they could potentially move (Crowder, Smart, Bradley), given the depth at small forward. He also has one of the best contracts in the NBA, so there is a ton of value outside of his actual on-court performance.
There isn’t really anyone I can see the Jazz giving up that would make this a fair trade. Rodney Hood would be a great return and would actually shed around $4M in cap space, but I don’t see Utah doing that. He is developing into a great scorer and is one of their best young players, so why would they give that up after losing Hayward? I also don’t really see the need for another wing player when one of the reasons they’re trading Crowder is because they have too many on the roster. Derrick Favors is another player that would be a good return for Crowder, and need wise it would make a ton of sense. But the problem with him is his contract. He’s making more than Crowder, and since they are trying to shed his cap how would a deal for him make sense? That would probably mean they have to give up Marcus Smart/Avery Bradley along with Crowder, and that’s not something I’d be okay with. Everything about this sign-and-trade rumor just doesn’t make sense to me.
The Celtics have all of the leverage in this situation with the Jazz. They really don’t even have to do a sign-and-trade, but the Jazz have a hole at small forward and Jae Crowder is a hot name around the league. If the Celtics are to do this and just dump his salary for nothing I’ll be pretty disappointed.
Written By: Nick Cherico (@NickCherico2)