Crawford Making His Case for 6th Man of the Year

Jamal Crawford, latest and greatest addition to Atlanta.

Since his start in the NBA, Jamal has always been an outrageously inconsistent player. One night, he’d go off for 40 or more points, and then would be cold for the next 5 games.  He’s traveled through Chicago, New York, and Golden State without a single visit ever to the post season. His newest sting in Atlanta, though, could be the real deal.

Jamal Crawford came into this league as a very scrappy player. He had poor field goal percentage and only averaged 4.6 points per game. He didn’t reach his peak until he was moved from Chicago to New York, where he averaged a career high 20.6 points per game on 41% field goal shooting during the ‘07-’08 season.

Unfortunately, Jamal has never been a perfect fit for a team… until now. The up and coming ‘Beasts of the East’ in Atlanta were missing something key to their rotation before taking the next step in becoming a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference with the likes of Boston and Cleveland: a spark plug. Often, we see a stagnant offense in Atlanta, which accounts for many of their losses. Luckily enough, Crawford has landed in their nest.

Coming off the bench in Atlanta, Jamal Crawford is averaging a career high 46% field goal percentage and a steady 16.9 points per game. He is also at his lowest turnover rate since his 3rd year in his NBA career. Not only does Jamal provide instant and consistent offence off the bench, but he has proven to be a perfect fit for the squad. The Atlanta Hawks are one of the most athletic teams in the NBA, and the addition of Crawford to their squad doesn’t exactly take that away from them. Jamal has all the razzle and all the dazzle to stun the crowd, as observed here.

The Atlanta Hawks now stand at an impressive 23-13 record, which makes them 4th in the Eastern Conference.

Tune in next week to hear why some of these guys could win the award:

Chris "Birdman" Anderson - Denver Nuggets

Carl Landry - Houston Rockets

Al Harrington - New York Knicks

Jason Terry - Dallas Mavericks