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Wikipedia: Crittenton was born to Sonya Dixon in Atlanta, Georgia. one younger sister, Shaniya Lee. Crittenton grew up in a single-parent household and was raised by his mother.As a child, Crittenton played basketball obsessively; he practiced on a children's basketball hoop he got for Christmas when he was five years old every day until it finally broke. In later years his mother stated that she often had a hard time getting him to stop playing and practicing basketball. Despite this obsession Crittenton was a good student as a child.
Crittenton attended Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, where as a high school sophomore he played alongside Dwight Howard. Crittenton and Howard led Southwest Atlanta to the GHSA class A state championship that season. Howard would later go on to be the first overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft after turning professional directly out of high school. As a junior Crittenton averaged 28.4 points, 7.5 assists, and 8.2 rebounds. He led Southwest Atlanta to the GHSA class A state final again where they lost, finishing the season as the runner-up. As a senior Crittenton averaged 29 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds and led Southwest Atlanta to the GHSA class A state championship. Following the season he was named a McDonald's All American.He was also named Mr. Georgia Basketball. Crittenton was an exceptional student in high school who had a 3.5 GPA and was a member of the Future Business Leaders of America and the Senior Beta Club. After being courted by several colleges Crittenton ultimately chose local Georgia Tech, in part to allow his mother and little sister to be able to attend his games.
College
While at Georgia Tech, Crittenton has excelled and is considered a team leader, a rare honor for a freshman. Tech coach Paul Hewitt urged Crittenton to take over a leadership role on the team after his play in several games in February 2007. He recorded a career high of 29 points in a February 13, 2007 game against Florida State
Scouting Reports
-NBA Draft.net
-Draft Express
-CBS Sportsline
-Hoops Vibe
ESPN Insider
Chad Ford's Analysis: Crittenton is a good fit in L.A. He's a big, physical point guard who can shoot the ball. Phil Jackson likes players like Crittenton. The problem is that he's a few years away from being a major contributor. I'm sure Kobe is thrilled.
Draft Projection: Lottery to mid first round
Crittenton declared for the NBA Draft on April 25th. Crittenton announced on May 24th that he will hire an agent, ending his college eligibility. Former teammate of Dwight Howard.
Positives: Has great size and athleticism for the position. Very competitive. Sees the floor well. Excellent first step allows him to get deep penetration into the paint. Great hands. Rarely mishandles the ball. Vocal leader on the court. Unselfish. Good defender. Doesn't have the rep as a great shooter, but has shot the ball well, especially from deep, for Georgia Tech this year.
Negatives: Decision making needs to be improved. He's been very turnover prone. Needs to add strength. Gets bothered by small, quick guards who pressure him.
Summary: Most big point guards are really two guards with some ballhandling skills. Not Crittenton. He's a legit point guard who has ended the season in a very impressive fashion. Scouts have cooled in their love affair with big point guards, but Crittenton may just rekindle the romance.
Woodson's opinion
Atlanta Journal Constitution: "Great body, great size for a point guard. He kind of [has] a Chauncey Billups body," the coach said in using the Pistons' guard for comparison. "He doesn't have the Chauncey Billups game yet, but he's very competitive."
Crittenton, whose greatest struggle at Tech was controlling emotions, said, "I'll accept my role from whatever team I go to. I'll do whatever they need. "
Some of his quotes while at GT:
On making big plays at the end -- "I just never gave up. No matter how I'm playing as an individual, I want the team to win. I just never gave up, I wanted me team to win and was going to do whatever it took for that to happen."
On the Clemson game giving him a boost -- "I'm a very confident person at all times. I came into this game tonight with the mindset of winning. If I would've had two points tonight, as long as we win, I don't care. I mean I want to play well individually, but all that matters is the team winning. This is an ACC game, as long as we win, I'm happy."
On this being his team -- "Not to sound cocky, but as a point guard, it has to be your team. I'm the floor leader, the coach on the floor, so I feel like it's my team."
He's a student of the game
Javaris Crittenton.org: It was after midnight Thursday, and Georgia Tech freshman Javaris Crittenton was still up, studying.
Not math or English, but a video of New Jersey Nets guard Jason Kidd. Some people collect coins, baseball cards or replica jerseys of famous athletes. Crittenton collects videos of basketball stars to improve his game.
The Tech point guard spends about four extra hours a week watching tapes of current or former NBA players such as Kidd, Steve Nash, Stephon Marbury and Magic Johnson. He also has a DVD of Michael Jordan.
"You can learn a lot, pick up something from each one," said Crittenton.
Crittenton, recruited early and hard by Tech coach Paul Hewitt, realized life could have turned out different for a kid who grew up in an Atlanta project where crime and trouble lurked.
As a teenager he found refuge and gained a strong faith at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. While at Southwest, Crittenton was a solid student who developed into the nation's top-ranked point guard prospect. At Tech, he's majoring in business management and will try to keep taking care of business on the court, where he wants to improve his "decision-making."
He's friends with Seattle's newest star
Javaris Crittenton.org: Both Texas and Georgia Tech bowed out of the NCAA tournament long before the Final Four. That hasn't stopped the teams' star players from working on their games - whether it's for the NBA or another season of college basketball.
Yellow Jackets freshman point guard Javaris Crittenton and Texas All-American Kevin Durant spent part of Friday on the court together.
"I went over to Georgia Tech to shoot around with Javaris," Kevin Durant said. "We know each other real well from the AAU circuit."
Interview from a workout with the Suns
Suns.com
Suns.com: Is there a lot of pressure involved with these workouts and knowing how much is riding on your performance?
Crittenton: I don’t look at it as pressure, I just come in here, play my game, show them what I have and try to be me.
Suns.com: You’re known for spending a lot of time viewing tapes of other point guards. How much tape have you watched of Steve Nash these past few seasons?
Crittenton: I watch a lot of Steve, him and Jason Kidd more than anybody else.
Suns.com: Any reason why the former Sun and current Sun stand out among the rest?
Crittenton: They make the right decisions coming down the court and do a great job of controlling the tempo throughout a game.
Suns.com: You played your freshmen season at Georgia Tech where another former Suns point guard Stephon Marbury played. How much have you watched him over the years and how are your games similar?
Crittenton: I loved Stephon. When I was back in tenth grade, he was one of my favorite players. He’s big, I’m bigger than him obviously, but we can both handle the ball, get to the hole and we’re both athletic. There are a lot of similarities.
Suns.com: How about differences?
Crittenton: The only knock Stephon has had on him is people saying he’s not known for winning. I want to make sure that isn’t the case with me. I know it’s tough to win games in this league, but that’s what I want to do.
