Jae Crowder’s Phoenix Suns career is effectively over, with the veteran forward to sit out training camp as both player and franchise work on a trade. While it’s a strange culmination to Crowder’s time in Phoenix, it’s an unsurprising turn of events given Crowder’s social media activity this offseason.
Most recently, he delivered a provocative tweet in response to Arizona Sports’ Duane Rankin, stating he wouldn’t be at Suns training camp. In turns out that wasn’t a bluff, leaving an undesirable situation for the franchise.
With forward Jae Crowder officially requesting a trade, the Phoenix Suns still need to ensure they get adequate compensation for a starting calibre player.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported the news on Sunday, less than 24 hours out from Suns media day on Monday.
The Phoenix Suns and Jae Crowder have mutually agreed that the veteran forward will not participate in training camp as the sides work on a trade, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 25, 2022
How we got to this situation isn’t exactly clear at this point. Crowder had a significant impact on the franchise over his two seasons, aiding the Suns’ bounceback to a contending team after a decade without postseason action.
Just yesterday Valley of the Suns aimed to identify the various factors that could have led to Crowder’s aggravation and request to move on from Phoenix.
"“Crowder’s urge to leave Suns is a strange one – there are a number of potential factors, but most fans would see them as illegitimate reasons to leave a title contender. Like the majority of his teammates and the entire organization, Crowder faced criticism in the wake of the Suns loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the second-round of the playoffs.”He could also be sick of being involved in trade speculation, though that’s rarely been the case across his 7-team career. Perhaps he’s frustrated by the idea of Cameron Johnson replacing him in the starting lineup, but the reintroduction to a bench role is something he’ll have to become accustomed with regardless of the team he’s on.”"
The Suns would have hoped to have traded Crowder on their terms, but given he won’t provide on-court value to them going forward, their position on this is severely compromised. Still, it’s important that Phoenix get something of value in return for the 32-year-old, rather than simply rush to get something done prior to the season.