By Rich Levine
CSNNE.com
When the Celtics traded Al Jefferson back in the summer of 2007, we all knew the kind of player he was going to become.
It was impossible to watch Big Al over his three years in Boston (especially that last one), and not get bowled over by his potential. He was a future 2010 guy, just as sure as Kevin Garnett was a future Celtics legend.
Without Al, KG was about as attainable as a tiger blood and Adonis DNA.
Not even Kevin McHale could have justified making the move.
That right, Danny? Youll give me Gomes, Green, Telfair and Perkins for KG? OK, listen, why dont just you throw in Fred Roberts, Mark Acres and bite me. Then well have a deal.
Jefferson was the reason that trade worked. He was going to be a star.
So in that sense, the fact that Jefferson dropped a beastly 28 and 19 on Bostons collective noggin early this week was no surprise. The Celtics sent him away knowing that games like that would be in the cards, especially 3 12 season later. By the winter of 2011, everyone knew Jefferson would be this good.
But what we didnt know is that hed still be this insignificant.
In a way its a little depressing, seeing a guy with Jeffersons exceeding talent and endearing personality still linger in obscurity like this. Hes now in his seventh season, and still hasnt sniffed the playoffs since his rookie year. He went from one rebuilding project in Boston to a perpetual rebuilding project in Minnesota. When he was traded to the Jazz last summer, we thought hed finally found NBA salvation. Utah was supposed to be Big Als coming out party, it was going to be the year that everyonebeyond Celtics fans and league diehardswould come to recognize his abilities. The Jazz had finished with a losing record only once in the previous 27 years; over that stretch, theyd only missed the playoffs three times. In Utah, Jefferson was joining forces with a legendary coach, a Top 3 point guard and a supporting cast that could help take him to the next level.
Now: Jerry Sloan, gone. Deron Williams, gone. Playoff hopes, in free fall.
Jeffersons essentially right back to where hes been. Thats not to say the Jazz are the 2006-07 Celtics, or as bad as those T'wolves teams, but theyre certainly in a rebuilding mode and once again Als stuck in middle.
So, what can we make of whats happened to Al? Why hasnt he broken through into the spotlight? Why, even though hes averaged 19.6 points and 10.1 rebounds a year since leaving Boston, do most people still forget about him when discussing games most talented young bigs? Why does he keep ending up on these teams that nobody cares about?
Its hard to say, but if anything its just a reminder that in professional sports, sometimes its not enough to be good. You need help. Sometimes, you just need luck.
Its funny, now, to look at the career paths of Jefferson and Rajon Rondo. Back in 2007, Al was a 22-year-old future superstar. Rondo was only a year younger, but miles behind in terms of readiness or even potential. Thats not say that no one saw this coming for Rondo. After all, that summer, the deal for Ray Allen almost fell through when the Sonics tried to get Rondo instead of Delonte West. (How about the prospect Rondo and Durant running the show in OKC right now? Sorry, Perk. Didnt mean to tease you like that.). So they knew he was special. Anyone who watched close enough could tell Rondo would almost certainly become a legitimate point guard.
But in the same way Jeffersons sustained anonymity is somewhat shocking, no one imagined Rondo would emerge so quickly.
In 2011, hes a Top 5 NBA point guard. Hes a two-time All-Star. The leagues premier passer. Pencil him into the All-Defensive first team for the next three years at least. Its way too early to start making plans for Springfield (man, that just doesnt have the same ring as Cooperstown), but its not out of the realm of possibility. And thats no small feat. This is a kid who began his career as Sebastian Telfairs backup, who spent his first few seasons (despite the success) pissing off his coach and rubbing teammates the wrong way. Who still hasnt found a way (whether its a matter of technique, confidence or both) to work a consistent jumper into his game. Yet now hes one of the best. Now hes in commercials, hes plastered on bedroom walls across America.
And you cant help but wonder: How would that have played out if hed been sent to the 'Wolves? If hed been shipped out to another bad team, with a coach like Randy Wittman and teammates like Rashad McCants, Marko Jaric and a pre-meltdown Antoine Walker? Would he have even close to the reputation that he does now? Would also this talented still be there, but just sit there unnoticed and unappreciated by anyone outside the inner NBA circle?
Or would he have fallen into that trap that so many young players on young team do? Would he have been allowed to mature? Or would he have ended up like McCants, who was last seeing playing the role of a cross-dressing shoplifter in some random Web series?
Those are questions we ask all the time in sports. How much of anyones success and notoriety is a product of where they are, as opposed to who they are? What if Tom Brady had been taken by St. Louis with the 198th pick instead of by New England at 199? Is he a future Hall of Famer? Does he ever win a Super Bowl? Is he even still in the league? Maybe that last one is a little extreme, but who knows?
With Al Jefferson, you dont even need to get that deep. Because he is still around; he is still putting up numbers. All that talent is still there. Yet, when Paul Pierce was asked about Big Al after the game, he said: Als developed into a hell of a player, man. Offensively, the way hes rebounding, rounding out his game. Pretty soon were going to see him in a lot of All-Star games.
Why pretty soon? This is year seven. Why not now?
Another reason is injury, another product, in some ways, of tough luck. Jefferson was on the verge of breaking out back in 2008-09. He was averaging 23 points and 11 rebounds through 50 games. He didnt make the All-Star team but he was the leagues biggest snub, and lined up to make it next season as long as he maintained. He was getting some notoriety. Then he tears his ACL.
Not to pick on Rondo again, just to keep up with the comparison, but Rajons not exactly the sturdiest guy in the league. Hes gotten bigger and stronger over the years, but hes still on the leaner side. He gets beaten up over the course of every game of every season every game. He gets bruised and beaten and clobbered off screens. Thrown to the ground around the hoop. Yet somehow hes remained relatively healthy for four-plus season. There have been a couple snags, but nothing thats cost him any real significant time.
Meanwhile, Jeffersons built like a refrigerator. You look at him and feel like you could hit him over the head with a bat and not cause one bit of damage (except you might break your bat). Then one night he goes up for a block and snaps his ACL.
But that was over two years ago, and hes still not there. And now youre wondering if he ever will. Its not a matter of talent. On Monday night, we were reminded of what weve always known: Al Jefferson has the talent to exist among the leagues best power forwards. The only question now is if hell ever get the chance to let that talent shine through; if hell ever get the proper stage, or the right combination of teammates or the extended health to make that possible.
Or if we'll be writing the same column three years from now. Asking the same frustrating questions.
Rich Levine's column runs each Monday, Wednesday and Friday on CSNNE.com. Rich can be reached at rlevine@comcastsportsnet.com. Follow Rich on Twitter at http:twitter.comrlevine33