Richard Jefferson isn’t your typical basketball player.
That’s an awfully common statement, one that you see all the time. Players have Twitter and Instagram accounts in today’s NBA, giving fans a glimpse into their personal lives. It makes unique players even more unique than we thought they were. For example, this summer Ekpe Udoh hosted a meeting for his own book club made up of fans he met on Twitter. That’s crazy, and Twitter made it happen.
But that’s not why Jefferson isn’t your everyday, run-of-the-mill kind of guy. He’s not on Twitter. He’s not on Instagram. He’s not on Facebook or Vine or any other social media platform. It doesn’t mean he’s boring, and it certainly doesn’t mean he’s old-fashioned — though, at 34 years old, he’s definitely a veteran in NBA years.
He’s not a typical player because he follows the news — not on Twitter. He follows it on the television. The mystery surrounding the missing Malaysian Airlines flight? Jefferson was consumed by it as many others were. But a teammate of his wasn’t. Today’s youngsters get their news from Twitter and, in the case of one of Jefferson’s former teammates, Worldstar. So when Jefferson turned to this teammate to talk about the flight — where’d it go? — that teammate had no idea what the Mavs’ new small forward was talking about.
“I just went to my room and cried,” Jefferson said at Mavs media day. “I cried for our future. I cried for our children. I cried for the NBA. Those are things that are very, very sad.”
That’s the thing about Jefferson. He speaks in sarcasm the way many of us do. Make no mistake: NBA players are all, for the most part, funny dudes. But to understand Jefferson’s humor, you have to keep up with him. Some of his past teammates just don’t understand it. He’s not the typical player. And about that former teammate that wasn’t in tune with the world’s current events? Jefferson is taking the high road. “I will not say that individual’s name,” he said.
Entering his 14th season, Jefferson has just about seen it all. He’s been to two NBA Finals and has made the playoffs in both conferences — three teams in total. He’s played on the East coast, the West coast, the Midwest, and the South. This is his second tour of duty in Texas, after spending two full season and part of a third with the San Antonio Spurs. Dallas will be his sixth team. But as funny as the swingman is, he’s serious about winning.
“I came into this league only wanting to play in the playoffs,” he said. “And if you’re not playing in the playoffs, you’re kind of wasting your time.”
That, he said, is what drew him to Dallas in free agency.
“When they called, it was a very, very short conversation,” he said. “They called and told me about the opportunity, and it was done.”
Jefferson will most likely be coming off the bench this season behind fellow free-agent acquisition Chandler Parsons playing a little small forward and perhaps a little shooting guard. His role with the Mavericks, likely to be the fourth different team with which he makes a playoff appearance, will be to hit threes. That’s it. And he’s just fine with that.
“I am ecstatic because my job is just to knock down open shots when they need me,” he said. “And, truth be told, those are the things that help you extend your career. If i would’ve just depended on my athleticism and just depended on driving to the basket, and didn’t work on other aspects of my game, by the time I would’ve got to this point my body would’ve been beaten up. I would’ve been old and I wouldn’t have improved. Now, because I’ve worked so hard from year one to year 14, I can stand outside, I can shoot threes, and I can help younger players and other guys that need a break or need somebody to kick it out to.”
That improvement has been paramount to Jefferson’s career. He was remarkable behind the three-point line last season with the Utah Jazz, where he hit better than 40 percent of his attempts for the third time in four seasons.
That’s the type of efficiency the Mavs expected from him when they offered him a contract this summer. And if he can produce and the rest of the pieces come together, Jefferson and the Mavs will get back to the playoffs. It’ll work out for both parties. Just don’t expect him to hit you with Instagram updates when they get there.
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