Where Are They Now: Joe Crawford

  Joe Crawford, a McDonald's All-American, flipped his commitment from the University of Michigan to Kentucky to join an elite recruiting class that included Ramel Bradley, Randolph Morris and Rajon Rondo. During his four years as a Wildcat (2004-08), Crawford scored a total of 1438 points, which puts him 20th overall in Kentucky basketball scoring history. He scored is 1000th point on Dec. 1, 2007 in a game against North Carolina. He averaged 11.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for his college basketball career. Crawford was named to the All-SEC Second Team for the 2007-08 season. In the 2008 NBA Draft, Crawford was drafted 58th overall in the 2nd round by the Los Angeles Lakers. Crawford played in all three exhibitions games for the Lakers before being waived by the team. Crawford was sent to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the NBA D-League team for the Lakers before being called up by the New York Knicks. In March of 2009, Crawford signed a 10-day contract with the Knicks before signing with the team for the rest of the season in April. As a Knick, Crawford played in a total of two games, scoring only nine points. The Knicks waived Crawford in October. The following season, Crawford signed a non-guaranteed contract with the Sacramento Kings. The team later released Crawford before the season started, In 2010, Crawford was then forced to take his basketball talents overseas where he played in China. Crawford joined his former Kentucky teammate, Randolph Morris, and signed with the Beijing Ducks. Crawford played in 16 games, averaged 14.2 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. After one season, Crawford left China to play in Israel for the Maccabi Rishon LeZion for the 2011-12 season. Crawford led Maccabi Rishon with 19.3 points per game. Despite new opportunities arising for Crawford, a knee injuring would keep him sidelines for a few months. During this time, Crawford began a project to raise awareness of the international basketball community. Crawford wanted to teach kids about the opportunities outside of the US. Crawford and his brother, Jordan Crawford who played in the NBA, started the International Hoops Expo. The event included camps for college and high school players to help expose them to an international market. [caption id="attachment_179132" align="alignnone" width="329"] @ErieBayHawks[/caption] On January 18, 2015 the Erie BayHawks of the NBA D-League acquired Crawford, where he currently plays today. Crawford averaged 5.7 points this season in the 18 games he played in. This team also includes former Louisville player, Peyton Siva and Stephen Curry's brother, Seth Curry.  

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