Warriors sign Aaron Craft for training camp, now flush with grit, hustle, leadership
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Full disclosure: In the coming weeks, every NBA team will sign two or three - even five - players to come into training camp as extra bodies or as candidates vying for a final roster spot. In most cases, those signings are inconsequential, or not really newsworthy until a player makes an impression.
In this case, however, the Golden State Warriors may have changed their fortunes forever.
On Wednesday, agent Lance Young announced that the Warriors signed undrafted free agent Aaron Craft to a partially-guaranteed contract.
This comes following the news that guard Nemanja Nedovic had gotten hurt, meaning the Warriors could be short on guards when camp opens. Craft will come in, run drills, work scrimmages, and probably emerge with a job somehow.
Some of the discussion around Craft can approach ridiculous levels at times. He was loved at Ohio State to the point of over-saturation, with his grit, hustle and leadership being praised ad nauseam. That confuses the point some, as Craft actually was one of the more intriguing players to go undrafted, largely because he brings one very useful skill to the table.
He's a terrific defender.
At 6-foot-2, 192 pounds and without a strong wingspan or standing reach, Craft doesn't profile as someone with an NBA body or with even average athleticism. But he's a two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, a four-time Big Ten All-Defensive Team selection and was the NABC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior this season. He also happens to rank fifth in college basketball in steals since 1997 with 337, good for 2.3 a game.
No less an authority than Kyrie Irving thinks Craft is an NBA-caliber defender.
Offensively, Craft doesn't offer a whole lot, but the Warriors don't really need scoring from the position. Over nine Summer League games with Golden State and Philadelphia, Craft averaged just 4.8 points and 1.9 assists. As a senior at Ohio State, he averaged 9.8 points and 4.7 assists. If he can learn to hit 3-pointers consistently, though, there could be a role for him at the end of a bench.
Look, it's a training camp invite with a small guarantee. This is probably nothing. But there's a non-zero chance Craft becomes an NBA player, and that would be a lot of fun, for the overzealous Craft lovers and the reactionary haters alike.