Jamal Crawford

Aaron Jamal Crawford is a professional basketball player currently signed as a combo guard for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was born on March 20, 1980 in Seattle, Washington.

Crawford was drafted out of the University of Michigan by the Cleveland Cavaliers as 8th overall in the 2000 NBA Draft. He was traded immediately to the Chicago Bulls for Chris Mihm where he would make his NBA debut.

Crawford developed into a solid player by his fourth season, averaging 17.3 points and 1.4 steals each game. He was traded to the New York Knicks in 2004 where he blossomed into a prolific scorer, averaging 20.6 points per game while making a name for himself as a potent threat beyond the three-point arc.

In 2008, Crawford was traded to the Golden State Warriors for Al Harrington. In 2009, he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Speedy Claxton and Acie Law.

Crawford attended Rainier Beach High School in Seattle, where his number (23) is retired. After high school, Crawford attended the University of Michigan, where he was given a six-game suspension by the NCAA for violating rules on amateurism and extra benefits received by Seattle businessman Barry Henthorn.

Professional Career

After being drafted in 2000 as a freshman by the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was traded on draft day to the Chicago Bulls for their pick, Chris Mihm. After four seasons in Chicago, prior to the 2004-05 season, he was traded (along with Jerome Williams) to the Knicks for Dikembe Mutombo, Othella Harrington, Frank Williams and Cezary Trybanski.

On January 26, 2007, Crawford scored a career high 52 points, hitting 16 shots in a row at one point. He hit 8 straight three pointers, one made 3 pointer shy of the team record set by Latrell Sprewell in 2002.


Golden State Warriors

On November 21, 2008, Crawford was traded to the Golden State Warriors for forward-center Al Harrington.

On December 20, 2008, Crawford scored 50 points vs the Charlotte Bobcats in a 110-103 victory for the Golden State Warriors. He became the fourth player in NBA history (after Wilt Chamberlain, Bernard King and Moses Malone) to score 50 points or more with 3 different teams, doing so with the Bulls, the Knicks, and the Warriors.


Atlanta Hawks

On June 25, 2009, Crawford was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Acie Law and Speedy Claxton. On January 15, 2010, Crawford hit a game winning 3-pointer against the Phoenix Suns.

Achievements

He wore uniform number 11 and 1 for his whole career in honor of his favorite player Isiah Thomas (except for 2008-09 season with the Golden State Warriors, when he switched to no. 6). On December 6, 2005, he scored 31 second-half points in front of friends and family, as he and fellow Rainier Beach alum Nate Robinson enjoyed a road victory over the Seattle SuperSonics. This occurred just hours after Crawford unveiled Crawford Court, the $100,000 gymnasium for Rainer Beach High School. Jamal is also the only player in NBA history to score 50 points with 3 teams.