Al Jefferson on being traded for Kevin Garnett: I understood from Boston's point of view

Al Jefferson on being traded: I understood from Boston’s point of view. KG at that time, you already had Ray Allen. I was thinking, you know, first KG said he wasn’t coming. So, it’s going to be me, Paul, and Ray Allen, and all of a sudden, I’ll never forget. I’m in Jackson, Mississippi, heading to the airport to fly to Boston. Danny Ainge called me and said, ‘Yeah, don’t come. The trade is probably about to go down.’ I said, ‘What trade?’ He said, ‘Yeah, it’s probably going to happen.’ I appreciated that he told me, and for drafting me.”Source: YouTube What’s the buzz on Twitter? Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA “I had to understand the [young viewer]. That’s how they watch the game.” NBA champion Kevin Garnett talks about NBA viewership with @TermineRadio and @JumpShot8 pic.x.com/kKHm0KNoSk – 12:00 PM Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA “The gods [of basketball] didn’t get here by [load managing]” Hall of famer, Kevin Garnett talks with @termineradio and @jumpshot8 about players taking extended time to rest. pic.x.com/7epo6tzZLe – 8:38 PM More on this storyline Al Jefferson: “That was Doc Rivers’ first year. Let me tell you what happened. This was in May, right? I’m flying to Boston for my first NBA workout, and I have no idea what to expect. Now, it’s 90 degrees in Mississippi, so I’m wearing a Paul Pierce jersey with the sleeves cut off and some shorts. I show up in Boston, and it’s cold as hell. Chris Wallace, the GM, had just bought a new car and lost it in the airport parking lot. We walked around for 45 minutes trying to find his car. Finally, we had to call for one of those airport carts to drive us around until we found it.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024 Al Jefferson: “I get to the hotel, and I’m sick as a dog the next morning—completely messed up. My workout was terrible. I was off the whole time. I can’t even remember everything that happened. But that’s how I knew Danny Ainge really wanted to draft me, because they offered to have me come back for a second workout. I was too ashamed to go. I mean, after that performance, I couldn’t show my face again. After that, though, I had good workouts with other teams.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024 Al Jefferson: “Doc was also hard on me—always on my ass. I’ll never forget one day I went upstairs to the coaches’ office for something, and I tried to rush past Doc’s office so he wouldn’t see me. On my way back, though, he caught me and said, ‘Al, come here for a second.’ I sat down, nervous as hell, and he asked, ‘You think I don’t like you, don’t you?’ I said, ‘Can I be honest?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ So I told him, ‘I think you hate me.’ Doc laughed and said, ‘You notice the guys at the end of the bench? I don’t say anything to them. I’m hard on you because I think you’ve got a chance to be a player in this league.’ That changed everything for me. I realized he was pushing me because he believed in me.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024 Paul Pierce on Lakers: You can trade D-Lo too and get some draft picks and just let them roll. Kevin Garnett: Hell no. Laker Nation ain’t going for that. Pierce: AD is still good so do him justice and give him an opportunity to go somewhere and play for a title because it’s not happening in LA. -via YouTube / December 14, 2024 Paul Pierce on Jimmy Butler: He can’t get the Rockets over to the top. He can get them a for sure spot in the playoffs but like, if I’m Jimmy and I’m looking to try to win it, probably you got to go to Golden State. Kevin Garnett: Golden State over the Mavericks? Pierce: He doesn’t fit with them. He doesn’t fit with Luka Doncic. -via YouTube / December 14, 2024 Charles Barkley: I will say this about LeBron James: I think his career has been the greatest sports story in sports history. What I mean by that, Blue, is people forget Kobe Bryant struggled in the beginning. Kevin Garnett struggled. McGrady struggled. All the young guys struggled. The only guy who didn’t struggle was LeBron. He came in and played well right away. -via YouTube / December 6, 2024

DavidLetterman

Dec 21, 2024 - 12:42

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Al Jefferson on being traded for Kevin Garnett: I understood from Boston's point of view

Al Jefferson on being traded: I understood from Boston’s point of view. KG at that time, you already had Ray Allen. I was thinking, you know, first KG said he wasn’t coming. So, it’s going to be me, Paul, and Ray Allen, and all of a sudden, I’ll never forget. I’m in Jackson, Mississippi, heading to the airport to fly to Boston. Danny Ainge called me and said, ‘Yeah, don’t come. The trade is probably about to go down.’ I said, ‘What trade?’ He said, ‘Yeah, it’s probably going to happen.’ I appreciated that he told me, and for drafting me.”
Source: YouTube

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA
“I had to understand the [young viewer]. That’s how they watch the game.”
NBA champion Kevin Garnett talks about NBA viewership with @TermineRadio and @JumpShot8 pic.x.com/kKHm0KNoSk – 12:00 PM

Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA
“The gods [of basketball] didn’t get here by [load managing]”
Hall of famer, Kevin Garnett talks with @termineradio and @jumpshot8 about players taking extended time to rest. pic.x.com/7epo6tzZLe – 8:38 PM

More on this storyline

Al Jefferson: “That was Doc Rivers’ first year. Let me tell you what happened. This was in May, right? I’m flying to Boston for my first NBA workout, and I have no idea what to expect. Now, it’s 90 degrees in Mississippi, so I’m wearing a Paul Pierce jersey with the sleeves cut off and some shorts. I show up in Boston, and it’s cold as hell. Chris Wallace, the GM, had just bought a new car and lost it in the airport parking lot. We walked around for 45 minutes trying to find his car. Finally, we had to call for one of those airport carts to drive us around until we found it.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024

Al Jefferson: “I get to the hotel, and I’m sick as a dog the next morning—completely messed up. My workout was terrible. I was off the whole time. I can’t even remember everything that happened. But that’s how I knew Danny Ainge really wanted to draft me, because they offered to have me come back for a second workout. I was too ashamed to go. I mean, after that performance, I couldn’t show my face again. After that, though, I had good workouts with other teams.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024

Al Jefferson: “Doc was also hard on me—always on my ass. I’ll never forget one day I went upstairs to the coaches’ office for something, and I tried to rush past Doc’s office so he wouldn’t see me. On my way back, though, he caught me and said, ‘Al, come here for a second.’ I sat down, nervous as hell, and he asked, ‘You think I don’t like you, don’t you?’ I said, ‘Can I be honest?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ So I told him, ‘I think you hate me.’ Doc laughed and said, ‘You notice the guys at the end of the bench? I don’t say anything to them. I’m hard on you because I think you’ve got a chance to be a player in this league.’ That changed everything for me. I realized he was pushing me because he believed in me.” -via YouTube / December 19, 2024

Paul Pierce on Lakers: You can trade D-Lo too and get some draft picks and just let them roll. Kevin Garnett: Hell no. Laker Nation ain’t going for that. Pierce: AD is still good so do him justice and give him an opportunity to go somewhere and play for a title because it’s not happening in LA. -via YouTube / December 14, 2024

Paul Pierce on Jimmy Butler: He can’t get the Rockets over to the top. He can get them a for sure spot in the playoffs but like, if I’m Jimmy and I’m looking to try to win it, probably you got to go to Golden State. Kevin Garnett: Golden State over the Mavericks? Pierce: He doesn’t fit with them. He doesn’t fit with Luka Doncic. -via YouTube / December 14, 2024

Charles Barkley: I will say this about LeBron James: I think his career has been the greatest sports story in sports history. What I mean by that, Blue, is people forget Kobe Bryant struggled in the beginning. Kevin Garnett struggled. McGrady struggled. All the young guys struggled. The only guy who didn’t struggle was LeBron. He came in and played well right away. -via YouTube / December 6, 2024