Richard Jefferson Traded to the Spurs
June 23, 2009 by Stephen Kersey
Filed under Basketball
The San Antonio Spurs made a big splash on Tuesday when they acquired Richard Jefferson from the Milwaukee Bucks. On the Spurs, Jefferson will likely become the team’s starting small forward and joins Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili to form a formidable foursome.
In return for Jefferson, the Bucks got salary relief in the threesome of Bruce Bowen, Fabricio Oberto and Kurt Thomas. Both Bowen and Oberto have partially guaranteed contracts that will create space under the NBA’s luxury tax. Out of the three players, the only one who may suit up for the Bucks is Thomas.
Last season, Jefferson averaged 19.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. He shot 43.9% from the field and 39.7% from beyond the three-point arc. In 2003 while with the New Jersey Nets, Jefferson played against the Spurs in the NBA Finals. The Spurs won the series in six games to capture their second NBA championship. Since then, San Antonio has won two more championships.
Jefferson and the Spurs hope that he’s can be a key contributor to championship number five.
Richard Jefferson joins Tim Duncan on the San Antonio Spurs (Image: Zuma Press)
