While his old school post moves and little jump hooks are a thing of the past for Utah Jazz fans, it’s nice to see Al Jefferson still doing what he does in China.
What’s not to like about Al Jefferson? He’s such a cool guy off the court, and on the court he’s a throwback player that makes you feel like he’s in a class room teaching, not getting buckets on a basketball court.
His footwork, post moves and professionalism were beloved by Utah Jazz fans for three years. Big Al averaged about 18 points and 10 rebounds per game as a member of the Jazz. He only led them to the playoffs once, but the Jazz were always a competitive team when equipped with his services.
Jefferson, now 33 years old, played for the Indiana Pacers last season. He had a really solid year for them. In fact, Pacers’ President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard called Al the most important player on that roster, as Scott Agness of The Athletic and Vigilant Sports noted in his article about Jefferson going to China.
Through 10 games with the Xinjiang Guanghui Flying Tigers of the CBA, Big Al is averaging 15 points and seven rebounds per game. He’s primarily been a reserve, starting in just two games. His arrival to China was easily one of the more anticipated ones over the last few years.
Al had the opportunity to stay in the NBA and re-sign with the Pacers, but he was offered more playing time and money from the Flying Tigers. It’s hard to turn that down. Respect to Al for just wanting to continue to play the game in the latter stages of his career.
Hopefully we see Big Al in the Association again. If not, it’s been a heck of a run. The former Jazzman holds career averages of 15.7 points and 8.4 rebounds per game as an NBA player.