Evaluating Richard Jefferson

I totally agree TeXaSalsa. This guy is awesome, sees over the defense, shoots well, SHUT DOWN 'the next MJ' ... he'd be a great pickup for SF.

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Doesn't seem to get much attention by scouts. Think we could pick him up with the Milwaukee or other pick?

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I would most definitely love to draft Richard Jefferson. Did you see that one stuff he had on Randolph. He has crazy athleticism.

I really hope Arizona wins it all. The Maryland/Duke game? TERRIBLE officiating. For a while, you could mistake the Terps for the Rockets. NO calls. And the nailer - cheap call that disqualified Lonny Baxter.

I'm real mad... and I bet Steve is to...

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Chris Webber at the July 28, 2001 3:00 PM news conference when he announces where he will go:

"It seemed tough, but with guidance from Steve Francis, I learned my true destiny. That destiny is to play for the Houston Rockets, to bring them back to championship glory. One big man is all they need, and I believe I can fill that void. Thanks to the loyal fans in Sacramento, but Houston, Texas is where I belong."

 

Yup, the officials gave Duke so many off the ball calls that sent their best players to the line repeatedly. Back on subject, I too was very impressed by Jefferson. The whole Arizona team really impressed me tonight.

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Hakeem, Hasaw, Haconquered.

 

Jefferson has great talent, but so does Arenas, and the latter has been more consistent. RJ best games this year have been in the turny, so keep that in mind. Though their athletic gifts are probably less, I would rather have Battier or Mo Pete than RJ because they still have awfully good athleticism plus they seem mentally tougher. Now that I am off on this tangent, I sure wish we would have drafted Mo Pete instead of Collier (Mo Pete is about as good offensively as Walt, much better defensively, much younger, and much cheaper), though I will admit Mo Pete wasn't on my wish list from last years draft because I wanted a 4 or 5.

Also, on the draft front, if the Rockets weren't so loaded with guards I would really look at Arenas. He might never make the transition to the point (and may never play and NBA game), but he has sick athletic abilities that remind be of Vernon Maxwell and few others. If he had another 1 or 1.5 inches plus a larger frame he would just play the 2 (like Vernon), but he might be another Respert or Childress. If I am any other team but the Rockets I would not hesitate picking Arenas in the late first round.

Now, on the game tomorrow, I do think Arizona will win, but it is because RJ, Arenas and Gardner as a group play such great perimeter defense, and they also have Woods to erase their overplays if need be. No teams have the diversity of players to slow down Williams and Battier like Arizona does. Duke will only win if they get the ball inside and then out, and that will only happen if Az has to double down low. The likely candidate to make that happen is Boozer, but I am not sure what he will have left in the can for tomorrow.

Thus Duke has not played a team that can play defense on wings like AZ can, and AZ has a good offense too. The betting man should go with the best starting 5 as well as the best 8 players, and that is with Arizona. But if the 3's don't fall (especially those by Arenas and Gardner), it will be hard for Az to score efficiently on Duke as well. Also, if the refs call a lot of cheapies for RJ, Arenas, and/or Gardner, Duke could easily win that way. The refs and the NCAA are so much in love with Battier that I can't see him getting in foul trouble even if he commits them. Not to take that much away from him though, he is an very very good and clever player, I would want him on my team.

On Morris, I like Battier so much better, RJ too. Morris does have the frame with some altheticsm however, those Donyell/Horry types can make it in the NBA, not a bad risk pick--worth a late 1nd rounder/ early second.


[This message has been edited by Desert Scar (edited April 01, 2001).]

 

The refs did completely suck, but Duke still earned the win. Too bad Arenas and Gardner were like 0-13 from the 3-line, a measily 30% clip by them (for the season they were close to 40% together) would have done the job.

 

I did some research, found some data which could dampen our enthusiasm. Jefferson has a history of injuries throughout his career, I didn't dig enough to get more specific info. Statistically, he has turned the ball over a lot, more than the point guard at Arizona anyway.

I still like him as a pick, but I would not pin all my hopes on this guy just yet.

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Another player I would consider is Sam Clancy. Don't know if he is coming out, but a great quick leaper for a 6' 7" 240 pound guy. He also has a very soft touch from inside 18 feet and ability to get it off over bigger players. His ball handling has to be improved and/or shooting range extended for him to be a really good pro, but I really like his game and physical abilities. In my opinion he was the toughest guy to consistently handle in the Pac 10 this year (over Jacobson, Collin's, Wright, Arenas, Jefferson, Woods, Watson, Lamply, etc.).

 

jefferson really caught my eye during the final four. he's a sf who can play defense, a slasher who has got tremendous hops, and a decent shooter from long range (he buried numerous 3's against duke in the title game). he's also got a better physique than some other college players, like tayshaun prince. i'd love to have him on the team. however, i'd really love to see him stay in school and finish his college degree. that extra year will show us a lot about what kind of player he really is. example: two years ago terrence morris tore up the acc as a sophomore. now he's a senior and i thought he disappeared when maryland needed him the most.

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*You're going to need a bigger boat.*

 

Well, looks like we really could pick him up. According to ESPN, Jefferson's going to declare for the draft. I think I'd take him with one the Milwaukee or Dallas pick if he was available, but personally, I'm not convinced that he'd be our answer at the SF. I think he's an alright defender, but I feel people believe he's a better defender than he actually is because of the tourney, and because Arizona's such a good defensive team all-around. He might be better offensively than Shandon, but I'm not convinced he'd contribe more to the team.

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