The face of the Halifax Rainmen will likely find himself coming off the bench this season.
Eric Crookshank, a six-foot-eight power forward who averaged 14.5 points and 13.0 rebounds per game in 2010, has agreed to take on a sixth-man role after starting 18 of 19 games last season.
Although owner Andre Levingston trumpeted Crookshank as Premier Basketball League MVP last March, he said yesterday he wants a player with more scoring punch in Crookshank’s starting spot.
“For the success of our team, we need Crook to play a different role,” Levingston said. “Crook can give us a lot of energy off the bench because he’s not a great scorer. He can change the tempo of the game off the bench with his legs alone and if he can relish in that position, then he really helps us.”
Crookshank is the only member of the Rainmen who has been around since the franchise’s opening day on Nov. 15, 2007. He has made 62 appearances with the club.
Levingston said the 31-year-old from Oakland, Calif., took some time to think about whether he wanted to move on to another team but ultimately didn’t want to leave Halifax.
“He said, ‘I accept that role and I will do anything you need from me to make the team better,’” Levingston said. “He wants to be here in the city, he loves it here, his family’s here, and he should retire a Rainman.”
