One of the most surprising trade sagas of the offseason brewed on the back-burner for most of it. This saga includes Jae Crowder wanting out of the Phoenix Suns after 2 seasons of great success with the squad. Crowder had been teasing his departure from the Suns for a while, with Adrian Wojnarowski confirming earlier today that the Suns are looking to move on from Crowder and that he won’t appear for training camp.
Crowder tweeted about wanting to go somewhere he’s wanted, indicating that the Suns probably told him that they will be lowering his role or something else to make him want to leave the squad and prove something to the ones that closed the door on him.
Rookie Ja Morant had Crowder as a teammate on the Memphis Grizzlies until the Grizz traded Crowder to the Miami Heat. While Jae has shown a desire to return to the Heat as well, Morant is trying to recruit his former veteran to come back to their team and directly compete against the Suns in the Western Conference.
🔙🔜 https://t.co/awYmoQYlYL
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) September 25, 2022
Possible Destinations For Jae Crowder
Any Western Conference team that wants Crowder will probably have to offer the Suns something extra to make them want to part with him. While the trade value of an expiring contract that doesn’t want to be on your team is not very high, the Suns would rather have him in the East instead of competing against them in the West.
The Heat are the front-runners to make a move and acquire Crowder considering the massive hole in the power forward position left by PJ Tucker, who left the team for the rival Philadelphia 76ers. Outside them, there is interest in Crowder from the Chicago Bulls, Atlanta Hawks, and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Crowder is an NBA veteran that defines 3-and-D in the modern NBA. While he may be a tough sell as a wing today, he is definitely a solid post defender and can cover the perimeter well. His shooting stroke can be inconsistent, but having a player who can shoot like him is always a plus. If the Grizzlies can get the Suns to discuss a trade with them, Crowder will be a massive asset for the gritty youngsters.
