Sources: Kings close to deal with free agent forward Jae Crowder amid growing injury woes
The Kings brought free agent forward Jae Crowder to Sacramento for a workout before training camp began. Now, they are bringing him back.
League sources told The Sacramento Bee on Tuesday the Kings were closing in on a deal with Crowder, confirming a report from ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Kings (8-10) are searching for help after losing four in a row and seven of their last 10 to fall to 12th in the Western Conference. The team’s lack of depth at the forward spots has been a glaring weakness, a problem that was compounded when Trey Lyles suffered a right calf strain in Monday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Lyles is expected to be reevaluated in three to four weeks. In addition, DeMar DeRozan will miss one or more games after experiencing lower back inflammation following Monday’s game. DeRozan recently missed three games due to lower back tightness.
Crowder came to Sacramento in September to participate in workouts with members of the Kings’ current roster at their Golden 1 Center practice facility. Charania reported that Crowder could join the Kings as soon as Wednesday when they visit the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Crowder, 34, is a 13-year NBA veteran who has appeared in 115 playoff games, including two trips to the NBA Finals since 2020. He has averaged 9.3 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 41.8% from the field and 34.8% from 3-point range over the course of his career. At 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds, he has played both the small forward and power forward positions.
Crowder came out of Marquette as the 34th overall pick in the 2012 draft. He spent three years with the Dallas Mavericks and three with the Boston Celtics before bouncing around the league over the past seven seasons, spending time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Utah Jazz, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks.
Crowder averaged a career-high 14.2 points and 5.1 rebounds for the Celtics in 2015-16. He helped the Heat reach the NBA Finals in 2019-20, averaging 11.9 points and 5.4 rebounds. He helped the Suns reach the Finals in 2020-21, averaging 10.1 points and 4.7 rebounds in 60 games, including 42 starts.
Crowder spent the past two seasons with the Bucks. He appeared in 50 games last season, averaging 6.2 points and 3.2 rebounds in 23.1 minutes per game. Crowder shot 34.9% from 3-point range last season after hitting 43.6% in 2022-23. He shot a career-best 44.5% on 6.4 attempts per game for the Heat in 2019-20 and 38.9% on 6.3 attempts for the Suns in 2020-21.
This story was originally published November 26, 2024 at 3:37 PM.
