Shane Battier ranks Crowder as one of the top glue guys in the NBA

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http://www.theplayerstribune.com/elite-glue-guys-101/

So says Shane or his ghost. Very nice company and Battier himself epitomized the concept. Pretty long article, here is the excerpt noting the guys he cites:

Jae Crowder
He is an amazing glue guy. With his energy and his toughness and fearlessness he gives a young team in Boston a great amount of heart. There is not one aspect of Jae Crowder’s game that leaves you in awe, but he does everything well and the Celtics are better when he is on the floor. It’s easy to see why Brad Stevens likes leaving him out there for heavy minutes.

Tim Duncan
The quintessential glue guy.

What? Glue guys can’t be first ballot Hall of Famers? Of course they can. Tim may be the greatest defender of all time for the very fact that he is never out of position. Never. If you watch a Spurs game, Tim Duncan is always in the right place to not only to set himself up defensively, but everyone around him. That is why their defense is great every single year. He is very much the glue of that defense.

Sure, Tim gets ‘froggy’ every now and then and scores 30 points a game or grabs 18 rebounds, but he is really a pillar, both literally and figuratively, of the Spurs organization. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are both amazing players and first-ballot Hall of Famers in my mind. Kawhi Leonard is an MVP candidate now. But, let’s not forget why the Spurs have been great for so long: Tim Duncan. When he is on the floor everything seems to fit together and work better.

That sure sounds like a glue guy, doesn’t it?

Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala
Looking at the way the Warriors are playing now, when they’re really rolling, they’ve got Draymond Green at the 1 through 5 and Iguodala at the 1 through 4. People get mesmerized by Steph Curry’s shooting and the playmaking abilities of Klay Thompson, but make no mistake, the key to the franchise’s success is the health of Draymond and Iggy. They allow the machine to function.

Andre was a franchise guy for so long, but only now is he really being utilized to his fullest extent. When I talk about the narrative surrounding a player completely changing after moving teams, he’s a great example. He had an amazing career in Philly as the guy but some people viewed him as an awesome athlete who could never lead his team to playoff glory.

So it really was gratifying to watch his performance in the Finals last year. He was amazing. Oftentimes, being called a glue guy can be considered a backhanded compliment or a slight. But look, glue guys can be dominant players. There is no question that Andre Iguodala was a dominant player in The Finals last year and probably was the difference in the Warriors winning the championship. He is the perfect example of a guy who when he is involved everything works better.

Draymond Green is obviously great. It’s almost funny to look back at the people knocking him ahead of the NBA Draft. So many people focused on his lack of size and the fact that he didn’t have much shooting range. But if you just sat down and watched the guy play at Michigan State, you knew he could flat out ball. Forget the measurable and statistics, the guy is a basketball player.

If you just sat down and watched the guy play at Michigan State, you knew he could flat out ball. Forget the measurable and statistics, the guy is a basketball player.

When he is on the floor he unlocks the amazing versatility and creativity of the Warriors. He also instilled a certain swagger that I think really helped them make the leap last season. He helped that team believe they could beat anyone. The reason why the Warriors look poised to repeat as NBA Champions is because they have two amazing guys who are able to connect all the players on the roster.

Coming down the stretch in the NBA, you’re bound to see plenty of high-flying dunks and slick dimes. But take a moment to check out the guy off frame. Tip your hat to the player who was willing to take the physical punishment of diving for a loose ball or taking a charge to create an extra possession for his team. In the NBA, there’s a stat for everything. But if you want to be a champion, you have to build a team around the guys who care about the only stat that matters:

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This is a very, very high quality article. Read it. Twice.