6:22pm: The team confirmed in a press release that Crawford has been signed through the end of the season.
2:50pm: The second year of Crawford’s new contract will be non-guaranteed, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate.
1:38pm: Rather than signing a second 10-day contract with the Pelicans, Crawford has agreed to sign a two-year deal with the team, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (via Twitter). It’s not yet clear what kind of salary guarantees – if any – would be included for 2017/18.
10:30am: Jordan Crawford‘s first 10-day contract with the Pelicans has come to an end, but he’s expected to sign a second 10-day deal with the team, sources tell Justin Verrier of ESPN.com (Twitter link). New Orleans isn’t in action tonight, so the club will have until Friday’s game against Houston to get Crawford locked up to a new deal.
Few players on 10-day contracts make the sort of impact that Crawford has during his first week and a half with the Pelicans. The 28-year-old has assumed a key role off the bench for New Orleans, averaging 14.2 PPG and 3.2 APG in five games (23.4 MPG). A career .405 shooter (.306 on threes) prior to this season, Crawford has been scorching hot in his return to the NBA, with a .509 FG% and .519 3PT%.
The Pelicans, with 12 players on guaranteed contracts, had been carrying three guards on 10-day pacts to fill out their 15-man roster. Wayne Selden‘s deal hasn’t yet expired, and Crawford will be brought back, leaving just one open roster spot — Hollis Thompson‘s second 10-day contract expired this week, and he wasn’t re-signed by the club.
Assuming Crawford finalizes a new 10-day contract with the Pelicans today or tomorrow, that deal will expire later this month, at which point the team will have to decide whether or not to retain him for the season.
Good deal, Crawford can score and create his own shot plus shoot the ball. New Orleans needs all the playmaking and shooting possible.