NBA Rumors: Knicks Must Avoid Desperate Move for Jamal Crawford

Jamal Crawford is one of the most attractive free agents still out on the market, and he will likely come with a reasonable price tag, but that does not mean that he is the right player for the New York Knicks to go after. 

The Knicks have been going hard after Crawford since free agency started, but they don't have a lot of cap space left to sign a player of his caliber. 

Now, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, the Pacers are making a push to sign Crawford to a contract that would allow him to become a free agent next season. But he also adds that the Knicks are still exploring all avenues to acquire the 31-year-old point guard.

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The New York Knicks, meanwhile, continue to recruit Crawford hard, despite the fact that they can't offer a starting salary above $2.5 million unless they can concoct a sign-and-trade deal involving at least three teams. The Hawks are unwilling to participate in sign-and-trades that would raise Crawford's salary without a third team because of luxury-tax concerns.

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Crawford doesn't seem to fit what the Knicks need right now and that's why they don't need to go out of their way to make a deal happen. 

The Knicks are going to score points with or without Crawford in the lineup, that is what Mike D'Antoni coached teams are best at, and they already have the players in tow to put up 100-110 points per game. 

The problem has always been on the defensive side of the ball. They were able to upgrade in that category a little bit with the acquisition of Tyson Chandler. 

But Crawford is not a strong defensive player, and at point guard in the Eastern Conference, you have to have a player who is at least capable of stopping an opponent if you want to be successful. 

Things are finally starting to look up in New York after the worst 10-year stretch in franchise history under Isiah Thomas, and now is not the time to blow up the system currently in place just to try and get another name player into the mix. 

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