Richard Jefferson Compares LeBron, Durant and Steph Curry

like set set the stage. Um, we're closed to be on about twenty minutes ago, and I decided, I was like, oh my my charge my laptops not art because that's the only thing I've ever used in the laptop four it's presumes and then it closes back up, it closes back up. I don't do word, I don't do excel. I've never like written an actual email that's not on my phone. So I apologize to the to the crew. I love you guys. Let's get started. You I called you a TV star, but you should know the best

content is normally at the top of the show. And thanks thanks for kicking off kicking off our show with that context. Um in all sincerity. Yesterday the first fan returns of the voting for the NBA All Star came out, and it up the top a lot of the player you played against, a lot of players, you have been teammates of a lot of players. But no surprise, Lebron James was the top vote getter for the West. Kevin Durant in the East, the top Garden the West, Steph Curry,

top guard in the East, Kyrie Irving. I want to start with Lebron James. Um a lot to look into with him. He is just under five points UM from passing Kareem Abdul Jabbar for the all time scoring record. When you think about Lebron this season, uh, it's now his twentieth season, thirty eight years old. Where the Lakers sit right now put in context your view of where

things sit for Lebron. I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that Braun went to l A to like like go out to greener pastures and just like to kind of like ease into retirement and to oh, he won a championships. Like We've watched Lebron now for over twenty years, and one of the things that we watched is how competitive he is and consistently is like greatness is He's one of those people that are I truly believe are cursed with greatness. Like that's all he wants, right,

It's that's what he's obsessed about. And so to see this season kind of go you understand one season. You understand one season like hey, injuries, this and that. But I think to see the the you know, we've talked about the lack of shooting, the lack of roster construction, but it was just like basically last year was watched. This year they've kind of gone into it. Uh, the Laker organization is like, hey, we're gonna wait and see, Well, Lebron James not want to wait and see kind of

timetable and he showing that. He is showing that, Hey, I'm gonna go out here and go thirty every single night. No A d I got you. Of course he gets up mcbroject, I'm gonna do the best I can. And so watching Braun, there's a level of respect that I have that even when on one of probably the worst constructive teams that he's been on, he's still going out there and being great like not not good, not strong, not consistent, He's going out there being great games, gets

three hawks and knocked it down. Uh, it's a compliment to him. And it's just it's just tough to watch this the construction of this team really dictating people, but old Bron has done. It's like, no, Bron just doesn't have the caliber of players that he's normally had on his team for the last like fifteen years. Yeah, and it's been extraordinary to watch the different iterations of teams

he's been on his level of greatness. Um, you mentioned what he's doing this season, twenty nine points, seven and a half, free abound seven a half. Syste numbers are there. As I mentioned, he's probably I mean, if if you go by those averages fifteen sixteen, seventeen games away from passing uh passing Kareem, how do you view Lebron's at this point. There's still more to more to play, but his legacy in his place in NBA history, Well, look,

he's been the most dominant player of this air. His stats will be the greatest that the NBA has ever seen. I think the one critique that you might have of them, if we're just going to take out what your personal feelings are about him, Uh, I think would be the critique would be like did he win enough championship to

be considered the greatest of all time? And you know, my favorite thing is that as the league has grown, as the league has expanded, as the game has expanded, I think dominance is very very similar when you look at Bill Russell's eleven, when you look at Kareem. When I think Kareem has six championships, Magic's five championships, Jordan's six,

and then Kobe had five, bron Steph have four. Like to me that that you know, it could go either way with with with the winning that these guys have done. So when I look at like where he stands, it's you can make an argument for one to three, four, whatever, whatever your favorite player are. Some people have Kobe as

as their favorite player. I will say this, you know, just so it's not lost, Kareem Abdul Jabbar is the greatest basketball player or has had the greatest basketball career, didn't lose a game in high school, three national championships, all time leading scorer. You know, he's got all the things. I know, Braun didn't go to college, But I think if you look at current day modern basketball and the last,

let's say for the nineties on. I don't think we've seen a player be as great for as long as we've seen Lebron James and so however you want to however people would like to to put that into their goat conversation. Um, you know, that's up to them, real, real quick, because I want to get to Kevin obviously. I want to get to steph Um. What was Lebron like as a teammate during the finals and during a post and not just I understand a teammate in the

regular season, but you guys won a championship together. How would you describe what he was like as a teammate during that stretch. That's over. That's over. Clayland is a city of champions once again. The Cavaliers are NBA champions. Now there's there's I have never seen in my seventeen years. And I stand by this plan. With Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, Um, your Kich I played with, uh, Tim duncan Tone, all the guys are dirt. I've never seen a single player

take on more responsibility right never. As far as I'm gonna score, I'm gonna get tennissists, I'm gonna rebound. He's not the same defender he wants to was right, because obviously he's damn near forty. But I've never seen a player take on more mental emotional responsibility. I know there

was that clip of him a few years ago. I think they were playing against Boston, Like what happened there in that third quarter when they went on the run and then he just dialed He's like, well, then this happened, Then this happened, then this happened, and then they did this blah blah blah, and it was like everyone was like this dude just reiterated back are are just kind of went back and gave us the last like eight plays of the third quarter that was an hour and

a half ago. What happened, Um, We ran him the first possession, We ran him down all the way to two on the shot clock. Marcus Morris miss a jump shot, followed it up, he got it, They got a dunk. We came back down. We ran a step for Jordan Crawford, I mean Jordan Clarkson, and he came off and missed it. They rebounded it. Um, and we came back on the defensive end and we got to stop they took it on the sideline. Jayson Tatum took the ball out through

the Marcus Smart in the short corner. He made it three. We come back down, miss another shot, and then Um Tatum came down and went did a your old step and made a right hand lay up. Time out there you go. And it's like no, no, no, His basketball, like Q was on some prodigy level. Right. We all are a little arrogant, we all stick out our chest about and so as a leader, you have full like you give up the reins. You're like, bro, just tell

me what you need me to do. He's like, Richard, I need to make sure you're doing this, this, this, And I'm like, boom, got you because it's been clear and concise. Um. He is a very like he's an emotional leader. You know, he wears his emotions on the sleeve. But there's not many people that I've ever seen give the amount that he has given on a personal level, on a physical level, emotional and men to level to

the game of basketball. And that's I didn't play with Kobe, I didn't play with m J. I can't compare those guys, but I've never seen anything like it. Beautiful beautiful. It's been a gift to be able to watch him and still watch him. Uh, player that you've spent a lot of time playing against Kevin Durant one of the greats this season. I mean we get to sit next to each other up close watching him just do masterful things. Um. First off, what was he like to guard? I'll never forget.

And even I did an interview many many by three or four years ago. Uh, he walked Me and j Kid were kind of sitting there and then I think it was Kate Katie's rookie year and he says he remembers this. Uh he walked in and I'm six seven, you know, he walked into the court and I looked up and I go, oh, this is gonna be a problem, right because he was like even then we I was twenty. I want to say, I was like maybe when he came into the league, never seen anything like it. His

skill set, it's just so unique. He's so special. Um. And what I like about superstars in the league, they're all so different. They all embodied the same the same like really terrible space where it's like their talent and their gift is a blessing, but like the responsibility that comes with that, and the attention and the pressure and the media scrutiny and all that stuff that parts a curse. But Kevin Durant, he has been just like Lebron James,

just every single year delivering his scoring. He's efficient, there's no way to guard him. And we talked We've talked about it probably for the last like ten twelve years, but he just feels like he's getting better his knowledge of the game. He's still such a defensive force. Um. I just looking at the longevity of his prime and sometimes that gets that gets kind of drowned out because we're looking at Lebron uh and you know, they've been paired so many times. But Kevin Durant, I don't know

if we're gonna see a player like him. And I've been really enjoying watching his growth and maturity. And I love even through all the chaos, because that's what great players can do. Great players can calm the chaos. Fifty one for Kevin Durant. Kail. Once they got their team back, once they started getting healthy, the nets just went on a run and everyone's like, why aren't they talking about It's like, well, damn, this is what they should be doing.

They've got all the shooting, they've got all the talent, and and you know, the coaching change, I don't think you know, people talk about Boston and Jayson Tatum and and the the what they've done with their coaching change in the middle of the season, and they want to give them credit, and how, well, what what Kevin Durant and and Kyrie Irving what the Nets have done in the middle of a coaching change, and then get going. It's it's been special to watch. And so sometimes leaders

leaders aren't always vocal. They do it by their approach, and he is definitely an approach leader that you just have to respect. Yeah, and and you mentioned it. I mean, it's wild to think he's coming off that Achilles tear from UM and at age thirty fifteenth year, the not only the numbers he's putting up this season, but the efficiency of which he's doing it. To the Nets at a twelve game win streak just snapped in their loss

to Chicago. But when you I mean you played for the Nets, you spent how many seven years with the New Jersey Nets, something along those lines. In the draft, um, but to think about potentially this group, and you said, if the pieces are healthy and together, they have the

potential to make a run to the finals. Um, what would that do for Kevin Durant in in just that group, this group, considering the way things began this season, Well, I wouldn't even you know, you'd probably go back a few years, you know, a few years this this stretch of nets basketball. So what would it mean for them? For this stretched at him and Kyrie have embarked on and you know, going to Brooklyn starting, you know that

this momentum of trying to win a championship. Look, you're for nothing's like your first championship, nothing's like your first. But I will go and say that whatever championship Kevin Durant wins, if he is the finals MVP, if you know what, that would be the most important one of his career in my humble opinion. And it's not to demean the other two, but Steph won three championships and this is the one that they won this year is the one that everyone points to. And even Steph was like,

what will they say now? Right? What are they gonna say now? Because He's like, oh, well, you had Kevin Durant and oh, you know, you guys won that one early. But the fact that he's persevered, he is stuck with it and won that championship. I think for Kevin Durant very similar to the Lebron in Cleveland. Like he went to Miami and everyone's like, yeah, you guys won some championships in Miami, but when he won that one in Cleveland, it was like, okay, right, you know what, we got

nothing else to say. I think if Kevin Durant is able to win a championship in Brooklyn or in the next few years, I think that's the one you're gonna point to. You're gonna be like, Okay, that's the one that was a little bit different that we can like compare to other greats that you grinded, you went through all the things, and you were able to win a

championship probably the most difficult way. And we already know he's a top ten player, top twelve player, whatever you want all time, but you know that next championship would be the one that would I think boost him up the most. We're taking a quick break. Coming up, we're gonna talk about the most recent recent finals. MVP Richard Richards got us Roland talking about Steph Let's welcome back to NBA paulse Saracustack joined by NBA Champion. I said

it earlier, TikTok sensation. I feel like that's about that's about to be your calling card. I'm not on TikTok, but Richard Jefferson, Oh, Steph Curry, Yes, I want to talk about stuff because game changer, fascinating career, uh right now in his fourteenth year. And I almost I almost slightly forgot you were. I was thinking about asking you

playing against him. Obviously you in the Cleveland Cavaliers, your teammates Lebron James, you know, a couple of Kyrie Irving, a couple of those guys helping along with that in but you were a teammate of steps and what his like third and fourth year in the league or Golden State, the year he first broke the three point record, the year he broke the single season record. That was my year with them. That was the year went to the playoffs,

lost in the second round. But that's when Mark Jackson said they were the greatest shooting backcourt of all time. And literally because the world hadn't really seen in everyone was like, oh, you know, but there's and it was like anybody that was on that that that team, the Warriors team, like I sat back with at that year at time, I was like year twelve, and I was like, I've never seen two shooters do what these two can do. Like and again it continued to evolve because I was there.

My first year was Clay's rookie year, and then the next year they brought in Harrison Barnes, Draymond camp Bay's more. So you could see them building, and Steph signed his extension and he broke that three point record, and Steph is amazing, like like everything that you guys see, like Steph is one of those just like too nice to be like, too nice to be true. Now people forget about his dark competitive side because he definitely has one.

Like all the greats that I've ever seen, they have a darkness about their competitiveness because it's it just drives him and motivates them. But what he's able to do on a night in, night out, basis even his efficiency from deep and range. Here's Curry for the record. Step the old time. We're so blessed to see so many players doing things that we have never seen before, and Staff falls in that category completely. You watched him early in his career, but in particular this season in last year.

Um what surprised you most about the level that he was able to reach and obviously helping that Golden State team get back to another championship. Most is just pouring out. It might be his fourth, but it means so much and that'll do it. It's over the Golden State, Oria's return to a familiar place. They're on top of the NBA world. The fourth title of eight years is still very much alive. Well, I think the hardest thing to do is retool your game and your ability based off

of what your team needs. And great players can do that. Um, I know we talked about Lebron James winning a championship in Cleveland, in Miami, in l A. Well, his teammates were very different. There was was a construct there, but they're the teammates were for so for step to win a championship in fifteen sixteen with a very unique group of guys who were him and Clay and the team. Then they go to like a super team with Kevin Durant and and now it's like Clay and him are

in their peak and prime. Now they have some time to break away and their team is not very good, so they retool the team again. Clay is probably eighty percent of himself. They help, He helps develop Jordan's pool and the work and so to see the evolution that step is able to do. Uh, it's just it's so special. It's like you say, like you put step on a team, you give him the right pieces, you can win a championship.

That's what last year told me is that you can always build around step If Steph is at his peak and he still is. You mentioned peak, Lebron, Kevin Durant, Steph. You could pick one at their ultimate peak. Who are picking?

Oh this this is no disrespect, but it's Lebron James just because of his size, his passing ability, right, his passing ability is key because he gives you twenty five and he'll give you ten assists, So that means like he's going to be responsible for you know, of the scoring that's going to go on um if not more. But you know that that's not to to take away from any of them. But I don't think we've ever seen a player and like be able to do all

the things at the level that he's been able to do. Um, so yeah, I'd have to ride with him with Lebro Richard Jefferson, Thank you for your time. Join us again on Monday, when shall Sean Powell is with me to talk about all the big news of the weekend and be a pulse with Syracuse. Stock is a production of the NBA and I Heart Radio. Please rate, review, and subscribe on the I Heart Radio app or wherever you get your podcast.