Could there be a Boston homecoming on the horizon for Jae Crowder?
An NBA exec recently told longtime NBA reporter Sean Deveney they think Crowder would be a good fit for the Celtics, given his toughness and postseason experience. Crowder has played in 107 playoff games over his 13-year career, including the Celtics' Eastern Conference Finals run in 2017.
He's played the last two seasons with the Suns, and was part of their Finals team in 2020-21.
"He is a guy who, to me, makes the most sense for them because he has that toughness they want," the executive told Deveney. "He has been in the Finals, he has played deep in the playoffs for a lot of years and they could use another big guy to stretch the floor. And Ime [Udoka] loves a tough guy, that is the kind of player he was."
Crowder, who will turn 32 years old next week, was an effective 3-and-D player for the Celtics. He's entering the final year of his contract with a salary cap hit of $10.2 million, which would fit fit into the $17.1 million trade exception the Celtics created when they sent Evan Fournier to the Knicks last summer.
Last season, Crowder averaged 9.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. He shot 34.8 percent from 3-point range, slightly above his career average of 33.9 percent.
The exec told Deveney that Crowder could be available, because the Suns are looking to dump money.
The Celtics acquired Crowder when they traded Rajon Rondo to the Mavericks during the 2014-15 season. Boston dealt Crowder to the Cavaliers as part of its package to land Kyrie Irving in 2017.
Crowder didn't end his time in Boston on the best note with Celtics fans: he expressed his displeasure about them cheering for Gordon Hayward as a visiting player in January 2017.
Still, it's fair to surmise Celtics fans would welcome back Crowder back. But his offensive game might be a little limited for the C's. Their top need is arguably a lockdown shooter off the bench.
There's also the question of whether they would want to spend their TPE on Crowder when they can afford to bring in a higher priced player. The Celtics reportedly turned down a deal for former Knicks guard Alec Burke for that reasoning.
