re: Celtics aggressively shopping Jeff Green

Crowder is thick enough to play against bigger wing scorers and quick enough to handle 2-guards.

Here's ESPN's write-up on him

Every team needs a Jae Crowder. He's comfortable playing limited minutes off the bench, but can slide into the starting lineup and produce when needed. He is primarily a perimeter-oriented small forward, but is strong enough to mix it up inside. And he's an energy guy with legit skills.

That's hefty praise for a man who averaged 4.6 points per game and 2.5 rebounds per game last season. But dig deeper into his numbers and you'll find a case for more playing time than his 16.1 mpg. The Mavericks were 3.3 points per 100 possessions better on offense with Crowder on the floor and a whopping 11.1 points better on defense. Synergy graded him in the 79th percentile on offense (.986 points per play) and the 84thth percentile on defense (.785 PPP allowed). And he ranked 81st in the league in Real Plus-Minus (1.91). Pretty clearly, even in limited minutes, Crowder is contributing to winning basketball.

Defensively, Crowder is versatile enough to guard the ball-handler or the screener on the pick-and-roll, to chase a shooter around screens or to hold his own in the post. In fact, he ranked in the 80th percentile or better in all of those categories, according to Synergy. On offense, his effective field goal percentage was low (.524), but he excelled both shooting corner 3s (42.2 percent) and finishing at the rim (an astounding 65.2 percent). Those numbers bode well for increased production going forward as the Mavericks take better advantage of his best skills. Now, they need to play him more.