Al Jefferson was the perfect center for depth and veteran presence this season. He offered more than just his on-court value over the course of the year.
Al Jefferson finished his first season with the Indiana Pacers on bad terms. After signing a three year, $30 million contract in the summer of 2016, there were some moderately high expectations for the big fella. But in his first year in Indiana, he played in just 66 games and he was too slow to stay on the court and contribute. Fans were unhappy with how things were going for Jefferson.
Fast forward three months, and there was some news heading into this past season: Al Jefferson lost weight! Woohoo! He lost 40 whole pounds and in the process slimmed down to be in good enough shape to play effective basketball.
Unfortunately, when the Pacers acquired Daomantas Sabonis, the opportunities for Jefferson to actually play depleted. He only hit the court 36 times the entire season, and his 484 total minutes represented his first time ever being under 500.
But Jefferson’s value extends far beyond the hardwood. He was an awesome veteran off the court, and he was the professor for the younger centers in practice. Teaching post moves 101 to Myles Turner and Sabonis helped them grow before our very eyes, and his experience around the league made him a glue guy in the locker room. That is invaluable.
So Jefferson had an impact everywhere. Let’s look back on what may have been his last season in Indiana and see what is next for Big Al.
The Good
Al Jefferson can do something that basically nobody else in the league can do anymore, and that is dominating in the post on offense. The best part is that he knows that nobody can stop him on the block: “I think my playstyle has faded out, but I think coach does a great job of running plays for me and getting me the ball. If I’m in the game and if you don’t put me on the block, there’s no point of putting me in the game. Guys don’t know how to defend it.” Jefferson told me back in February.
You see it almost every time Al Jefferson enters a game. Some poor sucker thinks he can handle big Al in the paint, but professor Jefferson takes them to office hours and scores some easy points. It’s the hallmark of how he stays effective.
Poor Khem Birch failed this exam. He had rarely seen anything like this post move before in his career. Jefferson initiated contact and figured out which way Birch was leaning. Once he discovered he was bent, Jefferson spun the other way and put him in a blender:
And we all remember the move he put on Joel Embiid a few months ago. Embiid may be a talented young player, but he can’t even hang with Jefferson’s post moves:
Look at those crisp moves! Jefferson consistently dominates down low, and it allows him to be able to stay on the floor in his old age.
Another skill big Al excels at is rebounding. He pulled down 10.6 rebounds per 36 minutes, the second-best figure of any player in the Pacers rotation. His 26.2 percent defensive rebound rate was the best on the team, displaying his talents boxing out his opponents and preventing the other team from gaining any extra possessions.
But perhaps Jefferson’s biggest and most useful attribute is his presence in the locker room. He was always smiling, and his attitude was infectious. He taught the young bigs how to dominate their opponents and how to get by in today’s NBA. Jefferson always stood up and cheered on the bench when the Pacers scored. He was a perfect presence on a team that had such great chemistry.
President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard agreed, and he rambled about how great Jefferson was to the locker room during his end of season presser. There is no stat for being a good veteran, but if there was, Al would lead the team in it.
The Bad
Defense, defense, defense.
Let’s face it, Al stinks on defense. His 107.9 defensive rating was the 12th best on the team. His fouls per 36 minutes were up to their highest point since he was 21 years old. He just can’t move quick enough to be effective anymore.
As soon as he checks into the game, the other team just runs pick and rolls right at Jefferson until McMillan subs him out of the game. It’s challenging for the Pacers to work around. He can’t slide his feet fast enough to move side-to-side, and he isn’t fast enough to hedge and chase a guard downhill. It is a rough combo.
It is also why he fouls so much. He has to. He gets beat on a play and he doesn’t have any chance of stopping it besides hacking the opponent. To his credit, it is the best thing he could do once he is beaten. But he get’s cooked so often that it is a problem.
The other bad part of Jefferson’s game is related to the first one, his conditioning is poor. You can see it in his speed. He only could play 13.4 minutes per game (a career low) because he is old and out of shape. It is challenging to play him for extended periods of time because his effectiveness drops off sustainably after about 15 minutes of playing time, which can make him a hard depth piece to put others players around.
He is almost potent enough on offense to make up for his defensive shortcomings. Almost. But not quite, and that makes Al a slight negative in the aggregate. Combine that with his poor conditioning, and it is obvious why he finished the season with a career low in minutes.
A gif to describe Al Jefferson’s season
Upon the waiver of Damien Wilkins, Jefferson became the oldest member of the team. That, combined with his veteran leadership, made him the professor.
Unlike professor Mosby, Jefferson probably knows how to spell the word “professor”. But just like professor Mosby, he is well liked and his upbeat attitude was contagious.
What’s next for Al Jefferson?
Jefferson has one of the most interesting offseasons coming up of anyone on the entire roster. He is due to make $10 million next season, but only $4 million of that money is guaranteed.
His contract doesn’t fully guarantee until January of 2019, so the Pacers could decide to keep him around until then. If they do decide to waive him, they could wait to do it until they absolutely need the extra cap space.
Another thing about Jefferson is that the $6 million difference between his non-guaranteed salary and his cap figure could be appealing to teams looking to clear some salary cap space. Trading away any player that makes $6.1 million or more for Jefferson would help another team shed some salary, so even though Jefferson isn’t actually worth $10 million, he is still tradable and could be appealing to other teams.
Despite not being worth his current contract, his veteran presence makes him valuable to keep around. If Jefferson and his camp are up for it, the Pacers could waive Jefferson and then resign him for the minimum. That would save the Pacers roughly $4.7 million in cap space while still allowing them to retain Jefferson and his services.
Next: Victor Oladipo hosting a basketball camp in Indiana this August
With so many options, what comes next for Jefferson is hard to say. He could look to go to a team that could offer him more playing time were the Pacers to waive him. Who knows what his interests are. But regardless, the combination of his on-court and off-court value were huge benefits for the Pacers this past season. Whether it is over or not, his time in Indiana should be remembered fondly. Especially this past season.