Al Jefferson: The great season nobody realizes

Written By Clevis Murray 

"Big Al" Jefferson was signed by the Charlotte Bobcats this past July to a 3-year, $40.5 million contract and is arguably the best free agent signing in the franchise's young history and probably their second best player in franchise history next to Gerald Wallace. He is currently having the best season of his career since the 2008-2009 season when he was member of the Minnesota Timberwolves and averaged 23.1 points and 11.0 rebound.  After Jefferson suffered a Torn ACL in his right knee, it looked as if would never become a 20/10 player ever again.

Jefferson is a Back-To-The-Basket player and is only one of the few remaining in today's NBA. With his 6'10" 289 pound frame he has great agility and footwork when posting up. He isn't sucked into the trend of big guys taking mid-range and 3-point shots. Jefferson realizes that not many people post up that much anymore saying "I have a game that a lot of people don't have anymore."

This season with Charlotte he has revived the franchise as they are having one of their best seasons in franchise history as they are currently 7th in the East with a 29-33 record (.468). The 29-year old veteran is one of only five players this season to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Jefferson this season has a 23.3 Player Efficiency Rating (PER) which is 14th among qualified NBA players and 3rd among centers. He's also 2nd among centers in usage rate with 26.7 (USG). His 6.5 turnover ratio (TO) is first amongst big guys which is understandable since he attracts double teams and is able to pass the ball out to the 3-point line for his teammates to shoot from behind the line. Jefferson is the defensive anchor for Charlotte as they are 7th in the NBA in defensive efficiency (DEF EFF) per 100 possessions with 101.4. To add "Big Al's" great efficiency, he is 2nd among centers in scoring per 48 minutes with a spot on average of 30. 

He's been gaining help from 2008 Basketball Hall Of Fame inductee and Charlotte Bobcats assistant coach Patrick Ewing saying

"Patrick, he told me the first day I met him that he knew I was a great offensive player, but that I've got to be motivated to become a better defensive player because that's the way we're going to win. When you've got a Hall of Famer telling you that, there's no excuse. You've got to do it. When he can believe in you, it makes it that much easier to believe in yourself. It's been amazing to have him around."

When Jefferson was signed by the team in July not many people were too fond of the idea of bringing in a almost 30-year old center that wasn't the same player since tearing his ACL in 2009 and also that the team should've stuck with brightening their future through the NBA Draft. The thing with Charlotte is that they haven't had much luck in the draft with most of their players either being busts or no longer with the team as in Raymond Felton (2005), Sean May (2005), Adam Morrison (2006), Brandon Wright (2007), Jared Dudley (2007) and D.J. Augustin (2008). The team has made a few good picks though in the past three seasons with Tobias Harris (eventually traded on draft night), Gerald Henderson (2008), Kemba Walker (2011), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (2012), Jeff Taylor (2012) and Cody Zeller (2013). 

Al Jefferson has helped Charlotte surpass their win total from the past two seasons combined which was 28 and is making everyone that said him going to Charlotte was a bad move now reconsidering their words. The 10-year veteran has done nothing more than speed up the rebuilding process. 

Kemba Walker believes Jefferson was the perfect guy the team needed as he recruited Big Al in free agency saying

"He's that guy that we need on this team, Not only basketball-wise, off the court as well because he's been through a lot. He's been on winning teams, he's been on losing teams. He's that guy in the locker room that you need. When guys are down, he's the one picking everybody up, so I was excited that we signed him."

When he was drafted back in 2004, Danny Ainge called him a "star" in the NBA and despite never being selected to the All-Star game he hasn't let that hurt his game as he continues to play like one on a consistent basis. Since the All-Star break Jefferson has led his team to a 6-3 record while averaging 27.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 54.6% from the field in 35.3 minutes as he is trying to help his team clinch their second ever playoff berth. Jefferson has had three standout games in the past months when he scored 40 points (career-high) with 18 rebounds against the Lakers, had 38 points and 19 rebounds which went unnoticed because LeBron James went berserk and had a career-high 61 points, and lastly when Jefferson scored 34 points in a blowout win against the best team in the East which are the Indiana Pacers.

The Charlotte Bobcats and Al Jefferson have something in common that many people might not know about, and that is advancing pass the first round. Charlotte made their playoff debut in 2010 against the Dwight Howard led Orlando Magic but were swept and haven't made a appearance since. As for Big Al, he's made it to the playoffs only twice with Boston in 2005 and Utah in 2012. Both Charlotte and Jefferson were doubted by the entire basketball community this season and now with the season almost over, their doubters are becoming their supporters. 

It's very easy to say that without Al Jefferson the Charlotte Bobcats would not be in the position they are in now as he is estimated to help his team gain 11 more wins (ESWA) according to ESPN.

A few reasons why Al Jefferson is having a great season in which nobody is talking about is because he's playing in Charlotte which has a population of about 775,000 and with their small population it equals less notoriety. Also since the Bobcats have had a .189 winning percentage the past two seasons it's a team that has become known for losing and also the Bobcats aren't good enough to be seen on national TV. Jefferson also isn't a dazzling player on the court as he lets his game do the talking for him saying "I've never been the type of player kids want to go see at the park, I've never been that above-the-rim type of player like LeBron and Blake Griffin."

When's the last time you seen Big Al on the highlight reel? The casual NBA fan isn't too interested in hook shots, up and unders or spin moves. Other small market teams like Indiana and Oklahoma City have exciting players that are typically above the rim or just flat out professional scorers in Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Surge Ibaka and Paul George. 

True basketball fans realize the type of player Al Jefferson is and are giving him his props for what he does because what he does on the court is as beautiful as a Leonardo Da Vinci or Vincent Van Gogh painting. All fans that have watched the game back in the day are cherishing Al Jefferson because he is the last of a dying breed that is going extinct very fast.

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VI

There's only one name that universally comes up as the greatest of all time.  Love him or hate him, he is the standard that all current NBA players want to surpass but how realistic is the thought.  Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, and even Dwyane Wade have been compared to him.  A former teammate of his even proclaimed that one day LeBron James could be better than his Airness but there's only one player that can compare to the greatness that was Michael Jordan.  On April 16th 2003, Jordan scored the last 13 points of his career total 32,292 points.  Jordan spent the last two years of his career with the Wizards but that's not what he's remembered for.  Michael Jordan was and will always be a Chicago Bull and will always be remembered for one number......VI.

For the past 17 NBA seasons we have witnessed the closest incarnation of Michael Jordan that perhaps we'll ever see and sadly he's nearing the end.  Still effective on certain nights, he is considered a relic in this new era blooming in the NBA.  His career blossomed during the time of relics and now he's become one his self.  It's funny because I once heard that as humans we all begin in diapers and most end their lives in them as.  It's a sad but cruel truth that afflicts us all too often and thus the career of an NBA player is no different.  There comes a time when it all ends, the mind wanting to soldier on but the body slowly betraying the wishes of its true master.  It's the moment that every athlete fears, the moment where one question is asked....."What do I have left to give?"  That one singular question has dethroned the greatest athletes, the most fierce champions and now facing his own mortality stand Kobe  Bean Bryant.

What does he have left to Give?

Over 30,000 points scored, 5 MVP Championships, 1 Gold Medal, and 1 NBA MVP.  Kobe Bryant has seen and done it all.  From the moment he entered the league he knew what his destiny would be, there was only one thing that he wanted.  Jordan was the measuring stick and Kobe wanted to surpass his idol at all costs.  The obsession eventually transformed "media friendly" Kobe into the Kobe that most of the NBA world loves to hate, The Black Mamba.  Demanding, foul mouthed, in your face Kobe but I forgot another label........multi-time champion.  With that being said isn't odd that the Mamba has been virtually absent this season?  The production is there, the foul mouth is there but something is missing.  Is it possible that Kobe has given us all that he has?  The endgame is upon us has Bryant himself has already stated that he may walk away from the game in two years once his current contract expires.  When I look at Bryant I see a great player that's 34 years young but in NBA years he's closer to 38 years old, having lived through countless deep playoff runs and multiple knee injuries. At this stage in his career what does Kobe have left to give?

Obsession:  The dominations of one's thoughts or feelings by persistent idea, image, desire, etc

It's no secret that Kobe Bryant is seemingly "obsessed" with becoming the best player that the NBA has ever seen and he has stopped at nothing to achieve it.  There's been feuds with coaches and teammates and some say that Bryant is even responsible to single handed breaking up the last true dynasty in the NBA, the Lakers team that began the millennium.  In his mind Bryant can do no wrong i.e. the departure of Shaquille O'Neal from the Lakers.  During the summer of 2004 Bryant had threatened to leave the Lakers for the Clippers and seemed serious about it.  The relationship between he and O'Neal was fractured beyond repair and once the Lakers moved O'Neal to the Miami Heat, Kobe Bryant signed a 7 year contract with the Lakers the next day.  The timing of Bryant's new contract spoke volumes.  The Lakers had made their choice and good or bad they had to live with it.  Kobe's profile skyrocketed and the "Black Mamba" was born but it was at the cost of several disastrous seasons for the franchise.

Kobe's move to run O'Neal out of town was finally validated 5 years later as Bryant began a string of 3 straight NBA Finals appearances, losing the first and winning the final two.  Not without the help of Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant had once again returned to the throne that he had grown obsessed with; capturing 4 and 5.  The Los Angeles Lakers are used to winning championships in bunches but in the NBA Championship teams/contenders usually only have a shelf life of about 3 years....the kings have their reign and then they die.......

A Thunderous End..............

As they always seem to do, the Los Angeles Lakers have regrouped and added star power but the one constant for the last 17 seasons has been Bryant or what is left of the Bryant that we once knew.  The additions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash were supposed to propel the Lakers to the top and they still might, these things often take time but that's the very problem that the Lakers are faced with.....time.  Howard and Nash are not 100% and the Lakers are a bunch that are long in the tooth.  They've already endured a coaching change this season and question still remain about their defense but yet Bryant is that constant, trying to will the franchise for his own gain, that elusive number six.  If championship were won on will alone, all great NBA players would have one but sadly that's not the case.  The West's franchises growing in strength as the Lakers are seemingly in decline is no coincidence as the last two seasons the Lakers have been eliminated from the playoffs in embarrassing fashion.  The Lakers currently face great threats from the Grizzlies, Spurs, and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

If the Lakers are to overcome the challengers that were mentioned above will the Black Mamba be able to lead them to victory or will it be a new Bryant, an incarnation of Bryant that we haven't seen before.  Known for being aggressive at all times on the court, Bryant has never come across a shot that he doesn't like but now in the twilight of his career Bryant must do something that he was forced to do early in his career.......he has to become the second option.  Kobe Bryant will have to accept the role of being selfless and defer to the Lakers prized off season acquisition Dwight Howard.  VI is not even feasible if Dwight Howard isn't allowed to take his place among the Lakers greatest centers, Mikan, Chamberlain, Abdul-Jabbar, and O'Neal.

Acquiring IV would be a great Christmas gift for Bryant and perhaps the final milestone that'll be reached in his career but it's a gift that he'll have to wait until June to capture.  In the eyes of many, IV would be a coronation for Bryant and the cementing of his greatness next to the standard bearer, MJ.  Once his career is over, Bryant will have more points scored, more assists dished out, and more rebounds grabbed than MJ but it is the elusive IV that will truly make the defining statement and bring finality to a Hall of Fame career, one that will leave Bryant on a list of the top 5 players to ever play the game.  What does he have left to give.............................................VI

  

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