Aaron Craft: Hustle, Heart & Winning

The 2014-2015 NBA D-League Defensive Player of the Year, Aaron Craft is a rare breed of players who thrive on hustle, heart, and winning.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.—  On a Wednesday night at the end of March, a six foot two inch point guard was warming up for an NBA D-League game that meant nothing to the standings.

Even though this game had no impact on the season, this undrafted, point guard from Ohio State warmed up, stretched, took jump shots, watched film, and had a smile on his face as he does before every game he plays.

This player may be six foot two, but he has the heart of a giant, and his name is Aaron Craft. The 2014-2015 NBA D-League Defensive Player of the Year has been a member of the Santa Cruz Warriors for two years now, and helped lead them to a D-League championship last season.

There will be no championship in Santa Cruz this year, but when you show up to Kaiser Permanente Arena you would have no clue.

In fact, were you unaware, you would have no idea that this team was 12 games out of first place in the conference, and eliminated from the playoffs long ago. They sell out all 2,473 seats, and the players have a confidence about them. Because in a way, all that matters is getting better.

Craft can be looked at as an embodiment of the Golden State franchise, and that includes Santa Cruz. Craft isn’t a guy that will be putting 25 points a night. That’s just not who he is. He is a guy who will give up his body to fight for one more possession. He’s all about hustle and heart, and everyone who’s seen him play knows it.

Ahead of Santa Cruz’s home finale on Wednesday night, I was able to catch up with Aaron and his head coach, Casey Hill. I wanted to find out what made Aaron the way he is. It seems like his play style is a dying breed, and I wanted to figure out what drives him when he steps on the court.

Golden State’s head coach, Steve Kerr, has had nothing but good things to say about Craft. Even before Kerr got the Golden State job he viewed Craft highly while working as a broadcaster with TNT. Kerr said of him that the position that he plays is “winner.” That is some high praise from a now six-time NBA champion.

“We love Aaron’s competitiveness and his defense and his energy and his intelligence,” Kerr said during last seasons training camp when Craft was with the team. “He sort of embodies what we want to be and what we’re becoming as a franchise.”

So what do comments like that mean to Aaron?

“It means a lot… There’s a lot of people that may try to not say a ton or keep their cards close to their chest, but Coach Kerr has been one of the few guys who has really believed in me and thought that I could make a career out of this,” Craft told me before the game, “So to have it come from a guy like him that obviously they have a championship and his basketball pedigree is unmatched. So it definitely means a lot to me and it’s really encouraging.”

Coach Hill was also in agreement with Kerr. He knows that Craft deserves to be noticed like that but said that Craft probably wishes other guys would get that kind of praise more often. It’s just the kind of guy he is.

“It’s in Aaron’s DNA, and when he gets that kind of praise it obviously means something to him that people notice it, especially people on Coach Kerr’s level. But that’s just kind of him,” Hill told me before the game, “It’s just the kind of kid he is. He’ll always get that. He’ll always get that from whatever coach is watching him play or whenever coaches get the opportunity and the pleasure to coach him.”

“There has not been one moment when I’ve wanted to take him off the floor in the two years I’ve coached him. I wish I could play him for 48 minutes…”

When you think of Aaron Craft you think about hustle, and there aren’t many guys in the NBA you can say the same thing about. It’s easy to go down to the park and shoot 100 jump shots a day. It’s easy to go down and tighten up your dribble, or shoot 200 free throws. You just can’t work on hustle. You either have it, or you don’t.

“My dad has been a coach since I was little. Been in the gym a lot. Been around it. So from the beginning I’ve had a coaches perspective on things and obviously the defensive side of the ball is monumental in winning games and making deep runs in the postseason, so it probably started there,” Craft said, “As I continued to grow older, I saw something that I can do to positively impact the game for my team. I really just started taking a lot of pride in it and really enjoyed doing it.”

In his four years at Ohio State, Craft averaged 2.3 steals per game. But like a select few others in the NBA, Craft’s impact goes well beyond the box score. There is no stat for loose balls dove for. There is no stat for number of possessions a player gives 110 percent. There is no stat for number of balls saved from going out of bounds. That’s the kind of stuff you have to see with your eyes.

“I have never. Ever. Ever. There has not been one moment when I’ve wanted to take him off the floor in the two years I’ve coached him. I wish I could play him for 48 minutes. I wish that he never got tired or never got in foul trouble and I could keep him out there,” Coach Hill stated definitively, “His hustle, his effort, his willingness to sacrifice himself for the team is just second to none.

“He’s special to begin with then you see things like that, him sacrificing his own body to try to get an extra bucket or to bring some life to our team is unbelievable.”

In a way, when you look at how Craft plays, it isn’t pretty. It’s not glamorous, and it won’t get you the same attention as scoring does. But that is, like Coach said, what makes players like Aaron so special.

During my sit down with Aaron and Casey, I made the comparison of Craft to Draymond Green. They both come in slightly undersized, they both defend at an elite level, and they both are willing to do anything it takes to get their team a win.

“I wouldn’t mind. You know, he’s obviously a great player. He obviously signed a huge contract this year and has gotten better. He’s proven that he is deserved of that money,” Craft said of the comparison, “But being up in training camp, he’s a great guy, only wants the best for his team and obviously we see that game in and game out.”

While both play vastly different positions, they both share the simple fact that all they want to do is win, no matter how it gets done.

Coach Hill said of the comparison, “I would agree. Draymond is a little bit more vocal than AC is but I’d agree. They both have that edge that it has nothing to do with what your size is, or what your talent level is. It’s just sheer unadulterated pure hustle and will to win and it’s unbelievable”

But what about an injury? All that diving around out there, and someone is bound to get hurt. Look at Andre Iguodala. A few weeks ago he dove for a lose ball in a game that was all but decided, and ended up twisting an ankle. Luckily it was just a sprain, but throwing your body around with reckless abandonment could possibly lead to much worse.

“There’s not much thinking that goes on when you’re doing it, it just kind of happens then you think about it afterwards. I definitely have a few scars from it,” Craft said with confidence, “My dad used to say when I was growing up that any skin I lost out here would grow back. That’s just kind of the mantra I’ve had for my life, and it’s just worked out.”

From a coaching standpoint it seems to be a double-edged sword. On one hand you want your guys out there giving everything they got, which hopefully leads to an extra possession or two possibly deciding a game. On the other hand however, you’d hate to see someone’s season cut short trying to extend one play in one game.

When I asked Coach Hill about it, I could see his mind turning, likely thinking about all the times he has seen Craft dive on the floor or jump in to the stands. “It’s really funny,” he said, “Last year at the beginning of the season when he would do things like that yeah, but then my mentality about him got tougher. I don’t think he’s ever going to get hurt because he’s just so aggressive all of the time.”

Now that Craft’s second season in the NBA D-League is about over, it’s time for him to be looking toward to future. In his two seasons with Santa Cruz, he has averaged 10.7 points, 6.6 assists, 2.3 steals and has shot 44.5% from the field. In this past season, he has improved on his averages in just about every major category including points, assists, blocks, and has greatly improved his mid range shooting.

Obviously he’s looking for a shot to make it in the NBA, but what will it take to make it there? Only scouts know what they are looking for, and it may take the right team to come along and really value what he gives.

“the one thing that the NBA needs to see with Aaron Craft is he just needs to go play probably with another organization…”

“Obviously I wish I knew. It’s just a lot about opportunity, timing, and getting in the right situation. You just continue to work, continue to try to have hope, believe in yourself and believe in the situation,” Craft told me, “I think I’ve done a good job this year with trying to assert myself more on offense, scoring the ball a little more when I’ve needed to, and shooting the ball better especially from mid range. I think that has definitely been helpful for me moving forward and hopefully that’s something I can continue to build off of and have momentum and hopefully it translates into something.”

Coach Hill believes that Aaron can be of value to an NBA roster. In his eyes if he keeps improving his jump shot, everything else will fall in to place. The Golden State organization already knows him. If there were ever room on the stacked roster they already have, Kerr would likely give him a shot, however, an opportunity may be more likely with another franchise.

“I think the one thing that the NBA needs to see with Aaron Craft is he just needs to go play probably with another organization, go play summer league with someone and let them see him, touch him, feel him, be around him, see how he affects his teammates, how hard he plays, and how he affects the game,” said Coach, “Have another coach, possibly an assistant coach for another NBA team have him in a summer league game and think ‘Man, I don’t ever want to take this kid out because he just has such a positive impact on the game.’”

The finish to Aaron Craft’s story has yet to be written, but every day a new chapter is started. This is a story about relentless hustle and heart. This is a story about adversity and resiliency. This is a story about one guy who just won’t give up.

Whether it’s a loose ball rolling on the hardwood floor, or a chance to play in the NBA, one thing is certain; Aaron Craft will never give less than 100 percent.