PLAYA VISTA – Jamal Crawford, who has missed the past three games with a strained left calf, went through shootaround Saturday and will decide prior to the Clippers’ matchup with the Atlanta Hawks if he will be available to play.
“I’m not sure [yet]. Today went pretty good and I’ll go through tonight, the shooting regimen and see how it goes,” Crawford said. “Either way I’m really close.”
If Crawford is available, he could slide back into the shooting guard spot, where he started nine straight games in place of J.J. Redick, or come off the bench behind Darren Collison. The Clippers (43-20) have won six games in a row, including a 142-94 rout of the Lakers on Thursday without Crawford, Redick, who will miss his 13th game in a row with a bulging disc in his back, and Jared Dudley.
Prior to his injury, Crawford was averaging 19.0 points per game and emerged as the NBA’s leading candidate for Sixth Man of the Year, despite intermittently starting 23 games. He went down on Feb. 26 in the second quarter against the Houston Rockets and did not return.
An MRI exam the following day revealed no major structural damage.At the time, Crawford said he was worried because he felt a “pop” in his calf. However, the original prognosis had him missing around a week.
“I haven’t played in 10 days,” Crawford said Saturday morning. “Taking that kind of time off is kind of tough but I’ll be alright.”