Jamal Crawford

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Jamal Crawford
Position	Guard
Height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Team	New York Knicks
Nationality	United States
Born	20 March 1980 Seattle, Washington
College	Michigan
Draft	8^th overall, 2000 Cleveland Cavaliers
Pro career	2000 – present
Former teams	Chicago Bulls 2000-04

Aaron Jamal Crawford, (born 20 March 1980 in Seattle, Washington) better known as simply Jamal Crawford, is an NBA shooting guard currently with the New York Knicks.

Crawford attended the University of Michigan, but 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, he was traded (along with Jerome Williams) to the Knicks prior to the 2004-05 season, where he started alongside Stephon Marbury at shooting guard.

On November 30, 2005, Crawford had one of the most successful halves of basketball in his young career as he torched his ex-team, the Chicago Bulls, for 23 second half points. The New York Knicks overcame an 8 point 4th quarter deficit in this game to beat the Bulls 109-101. The Chicago Tribune quoted ex-Bulls teammate Kirk Hinrich saying "I've seen Jamal do that a lot, It's unfortunate he did it against us."

Crawford's uniform number (23) is retired at Rainer Beach High School in Seattle. 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 stadium for Rainer Beach HS.

Crawford is praised as a deadly clutch player as he has scored six game-winners in the final 10 seconds in the two seasons he has played with the Knicks. This has earned him the nickname among some Knicks fans, "Clutchford." However, he is also criticized by Knick fans for his inconsistency, and in games when he didn't play as well as the previous night, he is referred to as "Crawful." ^{[citation needed]}

In the 2005-06 NBA season, Crawford was projected to be the starting shooting guard alongside Stephon Marbury following the retirement of Allan Houston, but instead came off the bench. After some early-season struggles, he became a favorite of coach Larry Brown for his work ethic and commitment to defense.

Jamal has one son named Kenneth Kirk Crawford.