Latest News, NBA / Jan 25, 2012 / 1:00 pm

The Top 5 Crossovers In The NBA

2. Jamal Crawford
Ray Allen’s not the only one to get an ankle workout from the only player in the league actually named after his crossover. Crawford’s game may not be remembered long after he retires – a career 15-point a night player on 41 percent shooting shouldn’t be – but they’ll still be playing tapes of his shake-n-bake and isolation crossovers 15 years from now.

“Jamal Crawford, my homeboy from Seattle, has the best crossover in the league,” Jason Terry said recently. “Jamal’s crossover is so tough because he’s so long and he stretches it out. There’s no way you’re going to get to it.”

He’s right. If we’re going by a traditional, boom bap crossover, there’s no better teacher than J-Cross. He says he learned it from watching first Tim Hardaway, then Isiah Thomas and finally Allen Iverson. He has the handles to do anything, but normally he reserves his legendary left-to-right cross for anyone crazy enough to check him in an isolation situation.

Crawford is probably the only role player in the whole league who could go on any team and get put in late-clock, late-game situations with orders being: “Go get us a shot.” He’s unique like that. Does he have the best in the NBA? If we asked him, I’m sure he’d probably say yes.

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  • http://www.dimemag.com Slick Ric

    I gotta say:
    Jamal crawford
    Deron williams
    Derrick Rose
    cp3(he may have the best dribble but I havent seen him cross as many people over as the first three.)
    Dwade

  • http://www.dimemag.com Slick Ric

    honorable mention: Tyreke, I havent seen tyreke cross as many people as viciously as those other guys but he does have nice handles.

  • Jah

    From their NBA body of work:

    Jamal Crawford
    Deron Williams
    Dwyane Wade

    “…and boom goes the dynamite.”

  • http://www.remixcomics.com NoDizzel

    All those guys have some sick crossovers. BUT none of them have made people penguin slide like D-Wade has

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv-2bK_v7NY&feature=related

  • stillanetsfan

    i agree accept dwill has forgotten how to protect the ball on his cross this year

  • nbaman

    Since iverson wants to come back he should still be number 1

  • north

    other than Crawford who’s crossover is so smooth none of these guys stand up to the original killer crossover from Tim Hardaway. This article made me go watch a few clips from back in the day. Timmy didn’t rock guys, he straight up hypnotized them.

  • Tee

    Jamal hands down

  • http://www.psychodrama.com Chicagorilla

    Lets make one thing clear, it does not count as a crossover if you use a pick/screen to do it. Nor does it count on a fast break and all you did was change direction. You have to be one on one with a player and attacking.

    with that said
    Rose has left many….many NBA players sitting on their back pockets in his short time in the NBA. Andre Miller, Tyreke Evans, Eddie House, Rajon Rondo, just to name a few. Which to me puts him on the top 3.

    But Deron Williams has the best crossover to me bar none. His isn’t about speed, it’s about actually fooling people.

    Crawford does it most times just to be flashy. He isn’t actually going anywhere. Also Jamal has went the allen Iverson route now, where he is basically just a jump shooter and doesn’t really have that crossover anymore or doesn’t use it. I cant remember the last time i saw a Crawford highlight of him shaking someone.

    DWade’s is a lot like Roses. HE crosses very hard and attacks, but he too has eased up on the dribble moves and now just settles for jumpers or coming off screens and carrying the ball on a crossover (which the refs don’t call) to the basket.

  • George Kanteis

    I like the order, but the top 10 crossover’s from Deron had to be in the wrong order. I think any cross against Derek Fisher makes it less impressive just because of how slow the guy is.

  • ak spitta

    anyone see d-wills cross tonight oh man

  • stefan

    @ ak spitta

    d-will has a top 10 crossovers in every game. last night he killed them again. it’s how he creates himself the space, by using crossovers a lot that is not matchable by others. he doesn’t do ample moves all the time, but he fools everybody on small spots of the floor.

    d-will undoubtedly deserves to be at the top of this list.

  • trollne1

    I gotta agree with everything Chicagorilla said. Rose does only one, maybe two max, crossover though. Not that he needs to do multiple fancy crossovers to get by his man. Just wanna see him play with the rock once in a while.

  • http://www.bettlejuiceXs3.com Chicagorilla

    The craziest part about Deron Williams being so nasty with his crossovers is that he wasn’t really that great of a ballhandler at U of I.

    He used to get his pocket picked a lot or fumble the ball because of pressure. Now Deron (with the help of NBA rules) has learned how to back people off him with that deadly crossover.

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