NBA Rumors: Crowder Prefers To Stick With Heat Moving Forward

One of the overlooked players this season is Jae Crowder who now plays for the Miami Heat. The 29-year-old ended up with the South Beach squad as part of that three-team trade with the Memphis Grizzlies for Andre Iguodala.

The trade, reported last Feb. 6 by The Athletic, also included Solomon Hill. And while most of the attention has been on Iguodala, Crowder has been quietly helping out the squad in their last 13 games. A look at Basketball-Reference.com shows the 6-foot-6 cager averaging 11.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.5 steals. He has been contributing as much as he can and this is one of the reasons why the Heat are clinging on to 4th spot over at the NBA Eastern Conference.

Crowder is in the final year of his current contract and is set to earn $7.5 million this NBA season. He will become a free agent this summer but it appears he wants to stick it out in Miami. He shared with Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald why.

“I feel comfortable here, feel comfortable with the whole organization top to bottom. If everything goes as we plan, I’m sure everybody would like to stay together and build off what we’re doing this year and go into next year with the same mindset,” Crowder said.

If he stays the course, there is no reason why Heat president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra would not want him back. He has been around and is someone who can be a workhorse for the Heat. But the final decision on that may all depend on how he performs until the end of the season. With the league now on a 30-day hiatus, Crowder's future may depend on what NBA commissioner Adam Silver ultimately decides.

In a previous post, it was mentioned how the NBA may consider scrapping the season if the coronavirus issue does not improve. The sports world is practically in a stand-still with the virus spreading like crazy.

As for Crowder, he should get his share of interest from teams in need of a small forward in the offseason. He may not be making as much noise as others but someone who can be reliable if given the right amount of playing time.