Jae Crowder is nearing a return to competition.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the veteran forward is close to inking a deal to join the Sacramento Kings this season. Details of that deal are still unknown. However, it is expected that he will be available on Wednesday during the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis.
Crowder, 34, spent the past two seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks. The 13-year veteran, who was first selected in the second round of the 2012 draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, will join his ninth team in the league once his deal with the Kings is official. He averaged 6.2 points and 3.2 rebounds per game last season in Milwaukee.
Crowder helped the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns to the NBA Finals in consecutive years, although he has yet to win a championship. Crowder became a free agent this past offseason and spent last summer with the Kings, though he was unable to strike a deal to land with any team.
The Kings are dealing with significant injuries and have lost seven of their last 10 games entering Wednesday’s game at Minnesota. Forward Trey Lyles will be out at least three weeks due to a right calf injury suffered on Monday in the loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. DeMar DeRozan will also miss Wednesday’s game due to lower back muscle inflammation, although it is unknown how long he will be sidelined. Third-year coach Mike Brown was fined $35,000 on Tuesday after also chasing a referee in their loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.
While it’s still unclear what his role in the franchise will be, Crowder should be able to provide some much-needed depth in the frontcourt behind Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis at least for the foreseeable future. We’ll see if he’s the missing piece to get the Kings out of their slump.
