Former Suns F Jae Crowder Returns to Phoenix
The Phoenix Suns will not only play the Eastern Conference leading Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night, they will also see the return of former Suns’ F Jae Crowder. Crowder will play his first game at the Footprint Center in the 2022-23 NBA season, this time, in a different uniform.
The Suns and Crowder have had an intense relationship since Crowder agreed to terms on a 3-year, $30 million contract back in November of 2020. Crowder, then 30-years old, came off a trip to the NBA Finals during the pandemic, which saw Crowder play an anchoring role for the Miami Heat.
F Jae Crowder filled a leadership role for a championship driven Suns team in 2021.
In his first season in Phoenix, Crowder averaged 10.1 PPG, 4.7 RPG and 2.1 APG. But Crowder had a much more important job for Phoenix. He, along with newly acquired Chris Paul, offered veteran presence to a team that was on the brink of a championship capabilities. Crowder has been a rugged leader throughout his career and carried that style to Phoenix. His presence was key to a talented Suns team that would eventually reach the NBA Finals that year, including a few unforgettable moments.
The “Valley Oop”, a play that will forever be remembered by Phoenix sports fans, occurred during game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. Trailing by one point with 0.9 second remaining in the game, the Los Angeles Clippers were almost certain to pull out a gritty road win to even the series 1-1.
A baseline inbounds left the Suns in an improbable situation, where Crowder stood waiting for the play to develop. C Deandre Ayton rolled to the rim off of a pick set by G Devin Booker, and the rest is history. A perfectly thrown lob came from the hands of Crowder to Ayton, who essentially pushed the ball through the rim giving the Suns a shocking victory. In the Finals, Crowder was the only player from both the Suns and the Bucks with previous Finals experience.
In the 2021-22 NBA season, Crowder and the Suns made it back to the playoffs where the relationship began to rot.
Crowder and head coach Monty Williams' relationship took a sharp turn following the game 7 dismantling to the Dallas Mavericks in 2022.
Following a historic blowout in Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals, tension between Crowder and head coach Monty Williams began to transpire. It was heavily rumored during the 2022 offseason that F Cam Johnson would settle into a starting role for the Suns.
Following a tweet from AZCentral’s Duane Rankin suggesting the competition between Crowder and Johnson, it was Crowder who took it Twitter, quote tweeting the tweet saying, “99 WONT BE THERE.!” Crowder would go on to delete the tweet, but it became obvious that he was frustrated with his situation in Phoenix.
Cryptic tweets about change, growth and a fresh start came from Crowder, in his signature all-caps style of tweeting, making it crystal clear that Crowder was seeking a trade in his final year on his deal with the Suns.
Speculation began to amount when F Larry Nance Jr. signed a 2-year $21.6 million contract extension with the New Orleans Pelicans . This type of extension could have been what Crowder was seeking from the Suns; however, we may never find out. It became obvious that money was a priority for Crowder who felt as though he was being stiffed.
It was also becoming clear within the organization that Crowder felt underappreciated. Perhaps not from teammates, Crowder was unhappy with the way he was being used and his changing role for the upcoming season. It was time he moved on; Crowder felt.
It was Williams that responded to the comments made by Crowder over the summer and his absence from training camp. The Suns and Crowder reportedly mutually agreed to have Crowder miss training camp.
This began a several month-long joust between Crowder and the Suns, featuring more tweets, more awkward drama for a franchise that was dealing with its own problems, and more uncertainty as the season approached.
Crowder and the Suns agreed to seek a trade, which left Crowder on the bench and eventually away from the team until a deal was done. One certainty did arise from this time period, Johnson was now the starting PF (it would not last very long).
Crowder's absence from the team made both Crowder and the Suns determined to make a trade work for both parties.
As the calendar flipped and trade discussions began to escalate before the Feb. 9, Crowder and the Suns were prepared to make a move. The move resulted in the largest acquisition in Suns franchise history, and it involved Crowder.
With Crowder’s bags presumably packed already, the Bucks welcomed in the 32-year-old veteran to add playoff experience to the team that beat him two years prior in the Finals. Since joining the Bucks, his presence has been felt by the community in Milwaukee, with Crowder’s college days being spent in nearby Marquette.
The Bucks will come to Phoenix and bring with them one of the more impactful players from the ever-so-close championship team. Whether Crowder receives cheers or boos, it is undeniable the history that Crowder had with the Suns in just two short, historic years.
