Richard Jefferson
Richard Jefferson
Richard Allen Jeffersonis an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. He was a member of the United States men's national basketball team at the 2003 Tournament of the Americas and the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics, and won the NBA championship as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBasketball Player
Date of Birth21 June 1980
CityLos Angeles, CA
CountryUnited States of America
Our second quarter we've really struggled the last few games. I don't know what's going on with that or why we've struggled. We have to figure it out. We had some success in that first quarter (in Minnesota), but again, we went away from it.
We are getting there. You can't do it over one season. It takes a few seasons to get it done. He is in his prime, I am coming into mine. So it can really carry over.
I believe we're going to be OK. Fortunately, it's not the best-of-1. This isn't the NCAA Tournament. You have a few more games to play before it's over with. So we just have to do better.
My first three years here is all about team and having lots of players around me. So you had to learn how to maximize your few opportunities. I was never a volume shooter. You look at my second or third year, I shot about 50 percent from the floor.
They have an unbelievable crowd here. But for us, it was, 'OK, they hit a few shots, let's calm down. We felt confident and it worked for us in the end.
Cliff is the ultimate professional. He's not just here to play games, just to say, 'Hey I'm here in my 17th year.' He's out there to compete, to play at a high level, and the last few weeks, he has.
In the past few seasons, have we had some good playoff matches? Yeah, we have. Are we looking for an opportunity to have another one against them? I think that would be a lot of fun..
In the past, a few years ago, it might have been cool beating them. But now it is just another game.
I was a defensive specialist ... I had to guard whoever Gilbert was supposed to be guarding, too. I'm telling you, Gilbert did not play defense.
It is better. It is more a stiff back, it is not spasms anymore.
I say we can work. We won the division pretty easily. We had some pretty good stretches where we proved our dominance. I wouldn't even say I had a great year.
I remember when I first got here, everyone was all excited about winning the division. Now it's kind of like you don't even see that many smiles. It's kind of like this is a part of it, where you expect to be.
I remember when I first got here, everybody was all excited about the division. Now it's like you don't even see that many smiles. This is a team (that) will be judged by what we do in the playoffs.
I still have a lot of respect for him.