Jordan Crawford Stepping Up with Swagger and "Steez"

swag·ger /ˈswagər/  

verb - walk or behave in a very confident and typically arrogant or aggressive way.

         synonyms: strut, parade, stride

         



noun - a very confident and typically arrogant or aggressive gait or manner.

         synonyms: Jordan Crawford




When Jordan Crawford dribbles the ball up the court , you can't help but notice his confident gait. Of all the Celtics on the current roster, no other player displays the swagger of Jordan Crawford.  For a team that's made up of rookies and players who are used to coming off the bench, confidence can be in short supply.

Fortunately, Crawford has confidence to spare.  This is the guy after all who as a college player dunked over Lebron James (The Dunk Heard Round the World) during a pickup game.  Crawford's emasculation of the King allegedly compelled Nike representatives to confiscate video tapes of Crawford's dunk (Nike Confiscates Video).

If you follow him on Twitter, you'll be greeted by his bold declaration to the world: "One A Mission to become the GREATEST!!!!!! WHY NOT? Wherever the Grind takes me"

At the start of the season, it was clear that the Celtics needed a point guard to run the team while Rajon Rondo continued his recovery from ACL surgery.  The Celts opened the season with a four game losing streak.  During that stretch, the Celtics were turning the ball over at almost twice as often as their opponents and their offense would disappear in the fourth quarter.


The Celtics needed a floor leader, a solid ball handler, a good passer and a prudent decision maker.  Enter Jordan Crawford, the least likely candidate for the job.  


While playing for the Washington Wizards, Crawford earned a reputation for selfish play and poor shot selection (Talented but Selfish).  And last season as a Celtic, Crawford sometimes lived up to that reputation, often taking ill-advised 3-point shots or recklessly leaving into the thick of the opposing defense without a Plan B if the path to the hoop was blocked.




This season, however, Crawford has proven he can be a floor leader and has so far reigned his recklessness.  He's shooting with higher efficiency - .457% field goal percentage this season compared to .407% for his career.  And he's become a much better playmaker and passer, averaging 5.2 assists per game this season as compared to an average of 3.2 assists for his career, while keeping his turnovers to an average of 2.0 per game.

But Crawford just as important as his ability to play the point is Crawford's offense in the fourth quarter.  Crawford has stepped up time and time again this season to carry the scoring load in the fourth quarter in nearly every Celtics wins this season.  

Crawford, in his own words, would say he's just playing with "steez" - style with ease.  And Crawford's steez seems to be rubbing off on his teammates as well.