Richard Jefferson Quotations

When it came to scoring, which a lot of people have problems with, I really let him take that role. I took that secondary stuff.

We're getting there. Late in the game, when we needed shots and we needed stops, they were there.

We are getting there. You can't do it over one season. It takes a few seasons to get it done. He is in his prime, I am coming into mine. So it can really carry over.

We were a team that could turn it on and off. People say you can't do it, but we were that team. I'm not saying it was often, but something wasn't clicking. Our chemistry wasn't right. But when things got changed up, things changed a little more.

There are five or six teams that realistically have a chance to win the championship, and I definitely believe we're one of them.

There are five or six teams that can make it to the end. Nothing's changed.

We've spoiled people early. We could win the rest of our games, but we're going to be judged by how we play in the playoffs. This is good. This is great. But we understand that's how we're going to be judged.

We've shown improvement and I believe our schedule gets a little more favorable. If we keep everybody healthy, I believe we can (win 50). I think we're going to be a team that makes a real good push. Sometimes, people forget about what we can do.

There is no doubt about it, both teams pride themselves on defense. It's not going to be a high-scoring game. It's going to be that type of series.

When your defense falls, sometimes your offense can be part of the problem. We were taking some questionable shots that were leading to easy transition baskets on their end.

We won the division (this way). You lose a game and have a bad shooting night and people question what you were doing. This is a guy who's an All-Star and has done so many things throughout the season there's no need to question it now.

Some nights, things just click. It's a combination of good defense. But they also had some good looks. They had some shots that they normally hit. You combine that with good defense and it was just a tough night (for Phoenix).

Mike is such a great player, such a clutch player. I joke with him, because he doesn't jump very high and he's not very fast, yet he's still one of the most effective guys in the NBA because he's so intelligent. He knows the game, and he knows what it takes to get it done.

My first three years here is all about team and having lots of players around me. So you had to learn how to maximize your few opportunities. I was never a volume shooter. You look at my second or third year, I shot about 50 percent from the floor.

More than anything, he just got comfortable. He struggled through the first half and didn't get into the flow. But once he gets hot, he's among the best. He's very tough to stop.

I was teasing him in the guts of the game. Hey, are you going to make a shot? That's the way we are as a group. We have so much confidence in each other, there is no need to get on anybody.

I wouldn't say we've been on our heels, but we haven't had things go our way.

I got it going in the second half. I just tried to keep playing through my teammates. They found me on some good looks. Honestly, our whole team had it going in the second half.

I believe we're going to be OK. Fortunately, it's not the best-of-1. This isn't the NCAA Tournament. You have a few more games to play before it's over with. So we just have to do better.

I have a lot of faith in my teammates and coaching staff. There are no major moves. We'll find a way. Somehow, someway, things will come up roses for us.

I felt good. It was a little tight and a little sore, but it felt good being out on the floor.

If I say no, he's a liar. If I say yeah.

If we win, no matter what, (at least) it's coming back to Jersey. If they win, they have a chance to finish it off (in Indianapolis) and their crowd and everything is going to be in their favor. (Tonight is) a very pivotal game.

He understands what the coaches want, understands different people's game and he really understands his own ability. He's a lot more aggressive.

He was unreal tonight -- inside and out. His confidence just grew and grew as the game wore on and it was just great to see.

He was unbelievable tonight. I was screaming before he even released the ball. Some of the shots, he started laughing. He'd catch and turn around and start shooting and I'd start laughing. He was making every shot.

He was unbelievable. He has a long way to go, but it is amazing with J-Kidd and Vince he still finds a way to stand out.

He hasn't lost a step, let that be known.

He might not be happy, but he'd have to go there and play. I guess it would be like playing for Charlotte or playing for Toronto.

He received criticism from the media, he received criticism from different people, but it wasn't from anyone in this locker room. It wasn't from anyone in the coaching staff, because we believed in him and believed that he had the right intent.

He's always at the game and he's a staple in New Jersey. People come to games just to see if he's going to be there. He's very positive when it comes to the team and it has a good effect.

He's been playing well for them all year. He's a guys who's been experienced for them, he's played in the NBA Finals, so a first-round playoff game, there's not so much pressure on him to perform.

There aren't too many people who don't know that man's name. That says something.

J-Kidd, it was just unbelievable what he did tonight.

J-Kidd, it was just unbelievable what he did. He's been all-league defense I don't know how many years.

J-Kidd is grabbing me, pulling me and I am telling him to calm down.

I was a defensive specialist ... I had to guard whoever Gilbert was supposed to be guarding, too. I'm telling you, Gilbert did not play defense.

I think we are going to be a team that makes a real good push. We have been a team that people consistently talk about for the last five years (come) playoff time. Sometimes people forget what we can do. I think the last 15 games, a lot of people are going to be talking about other (teams) while we are still playing well and having a chance to make some noise in the playoffs.

It is huge. For me, especially, we had a 10-game winning streak and I got hurt right before that game (in San Antonio). I wasn't able to play. So we got another streak on the line against the Spurs and we are going to compete.

I was just trying to joke and be myself. Tom is always crazy and I like to joke around. That's one of the good things about this school. You were able to be your own person and put in your own personality and yet you were part of a team.

I think they have come down a little bit to Earth after their fast start. It is extremely tough to live up to that hype. Everybody was talking about 70 (victories) after 35 games. I knew they were mortal. I didn't think they were unbeatable.

I think they've come down to Earth a little bit after a fast start, but they're still, I would say, the best team in the NBA. But we're a confident group here. I don't think there's a situation that we go into and don't believe we can win.

It is better. It is more a stiff back, it is not spasms anymore.

I say we can work. We won the division pretty easily. We had some pretty good stretches where we proved our dominance. I wouldn't even say I had a great year.

I remember when I first got here, everyone was all excited about winning the division. Now it's kind of like you don't even see that many smiles. It's kind of like this is a part of it, where you expect to be.

I remember when I first got here, everybody was all excited about the division. Now it's like you don't even see that many smiles. This is a team (that) will be judged by what we do in the playoffs.

Our second quarter we've really struggled the last few games. I don't know what's going on with that or why we've struggled. We have to figure it out. We had some success in that first quarter (in Minnesota), but again, we went away from it.

Our offense was not where it should have been, and you have to give them credit. Tonight, we weren't at the top of our game, and they took advantage of that.

Our offense failed us. A lot of the decision-making.

Our defense wasn't good. Our offense was twice as bad. We have way too much offensive talent to score 15 (third-quarter) points against anybody.

Our defense wasn't good. Our offense was twice as bad.

My situation was pretty easy. My high school is a Nike school; I went the University of Arizona. It's not like it was bad choice, or I went there just because it was a Nike school. North Carolina, Duke, Arizona and Kentucky are all Nike schools, so if you are going to a top program, most of them are Nike.

It felt really good after (Wednesday's) practice. Then I tried to do more stuff Thursday when we were still in San Antonio and it went backwards a little bit. . . . It was my fault, I tried to do too much.

It felt good. I felt like I had a chance.

I still have a lot of respect for him.

Just because he had an off night when all eyes were on our team doesn't mean that we have to question what we do and what we did to get here.

Maybe the 1 o'clock start helped us. Dirk and those guys didn't wake up until the second half.

That was probably the biggest win in the history of the franchise.

That was pretty amazing. To go up over Jermaine O'Neal, but also to recognize that he had five fouls, so you can't really go up and over him, you have to go around and put it in your left hand ... I've never seen anything like that.

That's a tough way to start a trip, but hey it's one of those nights. Vince goes down with foul trouble, then got a little bit hurt and couldn't get into a rhythm.

We just couldn't hit a shot. We were driving and kicking, getting wide-open looks, but we couldn't get anything to fall.

We just couldn't hit a shot. It was one of those nights.

You can do that because you won the first game. Just wait until after Game 2.

We don't concern ourselves with what other teams are doing. Because if you worry about who's winning, who's losing, trying to do all this math, sometimes you can get caught up in all that.

You know, we lost (Game 1), we give them all the credit. It's unfortunate that when we win, it's because of other things. You have to play against different people certain ways. Jason Collins and Cliff Robinson are doing a good job. It's unfortunate he believes that.

The preseason served its purpose, ... I know guys like to complain about the preseason games, but they would really complain if we didn't have them.

We didn't really shoot the ball very well as a team. When you attack the basket and try to get to the free-throw line, that's something that can kind of help you out. When you're not hitting shots and you continue to get to the basket and get easy buckets, that's something that we try to do.

We are a better team than this. We just had a couple of stretches where we are struggling, every team goes through that.

We're not very mentally tough. We're not very physically tough. It's consistent. At some point in time you've got to get mad.

We're not sitting up here, jumping up and down like we won a championship. When things are going well, you can't act like you're surprised they are.

We played against one of the top two or three teams in the league. We beat some very, very good teams during the streak. Now we have to try and continue our home dominance.

We didn't do a very good job of playing through each other or through the people we should have been. And then we got cold. They were hitting shots and mainly it was a lot of defensive problems. But sometimes your offense is a part of the problem.

You don't prove yourself until the playoffs. Detroit and Miami are the two best teams in the conference, and until someone knocks them off, they're still the two best teams in the conference.

We understand that this next game is going to be the hardest one of the series.

We knew we had the ability to beat good teams on their floor. So we knew if we could just establish some consistency (at home) we could string together some wins.

We put ourselves in that position. We didn't do a good job early.

We would drive and kick it to guys with wide-open looks but couldn't get anything to fall. For the most part we played good defense, but you have to be near perfect on the defensive end to have a chance the way we were shooting.

There are about five or six teams that realistically have a chance of winning a championship. I definitely think we're one of them.

We were the last team to beat them in the Eastern Conference. We still have confidence against this team.

You can't do that (stuff) on the road. You can't get yourself down on the road and think you're going to get the benefit of the doubt on calls. You can't think that.

You have to get it done in the playoffs before people talk about what you accomplished.

We've really struggled in the second quarter the last couple games. (Tonight) we did OK in the first quarter, but then their bench comes in and we struggle. I'm not sure why, but we have to figure it out.

You got to want it more than them. When the ball got loose, I thought I might have gotten fouled but I am not going to look around, I am not going to complain. I am going to grab that ball and keep going until they call it. We had more of that tonight.

You give them credit. They played good defense. Some shots didn't fall down for us. Fortunately, it's not the best-of-1.

This one has showed us that we've got everything going again and we're back in the groove.

Vince is our primary scorer and that's his role. When he goes down, it's not a surprise that we score with a lot of crazy shots or play out of our heads. We're just going out there and playing aggressively and good things are happening.

Vince hit some shots. He is going to shoot whether he is hot or not, but we have so much confidence in him. He received criticism from the media, he received criticism from different people, but it wasn't from anyone in this locker room. It wasn't from anyone in the coaching staff, because we believed in him and believed that he had the right intent. That was one of his games that you just forget about it and know that he is going to come out and play well the next one.

Vince has hit some of the craziest shots in the history of this league. But the importance of that shot is what I am most proud of for him.

We did a good job early on Dirk. It was just a matter of trying to contain him.

We had plenty of good looks, especially close around the bucket. We missed some easy shots.

Bosh posts up, but he likes to shoot jumpers, and we were able to take that away from him. You need to crowd and use your quickness on him.

Everybody was to blame. You have a chance to win on the road, and the last 10 possessions, you don't get many stops. That's what it comes down to. Forget everything that happened the first 40 minutes of the game. The last 10, 15 possessions, that really determines how this game adds up.

It would have made things a lot easier on Vince (Carter).

Right now, the team is struggling, I've struggled. And I think it's a direct correlation.

Realistically, I haven't played well since I came back. Nobody plays perfect in this league but I haven't played a good game since I got back. Tonight it was turnovers and missed free throws. I need to figure this out if I'm going to help our team.

Our expectations are high. But we're just like a lot of teams at this time of the year. We're going to try to win 16 games.

Opinions, right or wrong, aren't going to help or hurt the situation. They are what they are. (NBA commissioner) David Stern will do something and you have to live with it.

After a while we wear on teams, ... That's what's going to happen.

Coming into this series, he wasn't really known as a defensive stopper. But he's been coming in and giving us unbelievable minutes on Stevie Jackson. He's been in the passing lanes. He's been a great defender for us.

Any team coming in has the ability to beat us.