Jamal Crawford: Last of the Ballers
Awesome SI feature on one of the best to ever lace them up for Michigan, Crawsover. Especially after the raw deal he got at Michigan, it's great to hear how glowingly people talk about him as a person. Currently the last remaining player from the 2000 NBA draft class.
Perception doesn't always match reality.
October 24th, 2017 at 2:56 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:01 PM ^
What exactly happened anyways?
October 24th, 2017 at 3:10 PM ^
with someone who provided him with a car, spending money and a roof over his head for his last three years in high school. I'm not sure if that was done for exchange in Crawford attending that high school, but that's what it looks like.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:12 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:16 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:23 PM ^
I believe it was a local businessman, although he may have been friends with the coach.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:31 PM ^
The bigger issue from a Michigan fan perspective was that Carlos Boozer was doing the same thing except with his AAU coach. And yet, Duke / Coach K obfuscated this and Boozer was allowed to keep playing at Duke.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:45 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 5:21 PM ^
When you are hear about what goes on in NCAA bball, Izzo and Coach K are both a lot alike in that they have it down to a science in which they have their assistants do all their dirty work for them when it comes to 'cruitin.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:20 PM ^
Whatever the motivation of his benefactor, it pretty much turned his life around and got him out of a terrible L.A. neighborhood. But because his mom didn't sign away his guardianship (because, duh, why would you), the NCAA decided halfway through his freshman year (on the eve of the MSU game, IIRC) that he needed to be banned for life if he didn't pay it all back.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:28 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:21 PM ^
Crawford wasn't some poor kid getting knocked for taking a few hundred dollars, he was driving a Mercedes and wearing 5-figures worth of jewelry.
He got involved with the west coast Nevin Shapiro. All of the big time players in Washinton were getting cash from this guy.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:45 PM ^
Not that Henthorn didn't hook him up, but Crawford did come from a pretty rough background. I have more sympathy for him than say, Louis Bullock, who was from a stable middle-class family and took Ed Martin's money anyway.
October 24th, 2017 at 11:28 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:07 PM ^
He was brutal to watch back when I had Bulls season tickets. I couldn't wait for them to move him. Despite his play at that time, he still seemed like a decent kid. Glad he found his niche.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:17 PM ^
I'm a Wolves fan here in Minneapolis. He single handedly gave the Wolves their first win of the year scoring a ton in the 4th qtr. Coach Thibs drew up options on the last key possession but said all were designed for Crawford as he'd seen him make so many key shots before.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:30 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 10:19 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:21 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 3:38 PM ^
Luckily Gavin Groninger was able to fill in and provide the needed scoring spark.
October 24th, 2017 at 4:14 PM ^
Do you ever think back to that period of Michigan basketball and just marvel at how bizarre it was?
October 24th, 2017 at 4:19 PM ^
But everything worked out for him in the end.
October 24th, 2017 at 4:20 PM ^
I was on campus then. I remember the Daily running a photo of Josh Moore standing next to Avery Queen. Good times.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:05 PM ^
Oh good god, that's a memory I wanted to forget. Do yourself a favor and google what Josh Moore got into after Michigan. Par for the course for that era.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:30 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 5:32 PM ^
Gosh, I remember being 100% convinced Leland Anderson was the answer down low. "The next great Michigan big man!" Walked around telling anyone who would listen.
Swiiiing and a miss.
October 24th, 2017 at 3:29 PM ^
Unlike Crawford, I do wish I were a little bit taller.
October 24th, 2017 at 4:17 PM ^
I wish I were a baller
October 24th, 2017 at 4:05 PM ^
I think most of what's been said here matches my memory of the situation. The angle that most Michigan fans put on the story at the time was that this guy helped get him away from a scary background in LA, took care of him for 3 years like a guardian and not like an agent, everyone knew that at the time, and then the NCAA came calling. They kept doing the NCAA thing where they'd take forever to make a ruling and Michigan had to decide whether to play him and risk forfeiting games or sit him just in case. The final ruling was that he could come back as a sophomore if he paid back thousands of dollars of "benefits" to the guy, which Crawford couldn't afford since there are restrictions on NCAA athletes working and earning money, so he bolted for the draft after playing just a few games.
Maybe the relationship was shady and the NCAA was aiming in the right direction, but both the way they slow-played the investigation, handed out a hefty penalty, AND didn't enforce the same rules with Boozer made Michigan fans pissed.
October 24th, 2017 at 11:31 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 4:24 PM ^
How many games did he actually play at Michigan? Like, 6? It seems like he was only here for about 20 minutes, and was ineligible for about 10 of them.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:03 PM ^
17 games--which is about 5 more than I remembered it being.
October 24th, 2017 at 5:31 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 5:52 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 6:05 PM ^
Wasn't that to Leon Jones for a ridiculous dunk? I think i was at that game, definitely sticks out in my mind.
October 24th, 2017 at 6:52 PM ^
October 24th, 2017 at 9:54 PM ^
thanks for sharing this. It made my night.