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Cleveland Cavaliers player watch: Richard Jefferson's milestones to look for in 2016-17

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Apr 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson, left, LeBron James, center, and Tristan Thompson celebrate near the bench in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

With less than a month until the start of the 2016-17 NBA season, here are the milestones to look for Cleveland Cavaliers Richard Jefferson this year.

Last year was an incredible season for the Cleveland Cavaliers. They had their ups and downs, from Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert‘s injuries to chemistry issues later on in the regular season and a 3-1 deficit in the Finals.

Despite the rocky road, the Cavs came out on top. They united and prevailed, giving the franchise its first ever NBA championship and giving Cleveland its first major sports title in 52 years.

While last season was a dream for Clevelanders and Cavs fans everywhere, it ended more than three months ago. Now we’re ready for more basketball and are counting down the days until the 2016-17 NBA season begins.

Fortunately there’s less than a month until the start of the new season. But while we wait, we’re taking a look at all the milestones that various Cavs players can reach this upcoming year. This article is about the veteran forward Richard Jefferson. He’s 36 years old and has played 15 seasons, which means he has some big milestones coming up.

Jan 10, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) dunks against the Philadelphia 76ers during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

1,100th Game

Richard Jefferson is a veteran who, at the age of 36, has played in many games over his 15 seasons in the NBA. Two seasons ago, he passed the 1,000th game mark and currently has 1,082 under his belt. Despite his age, Jefferson has continued to play the majority of each season over the years. He averages 72.1 per year and last year played even more, at 74. But if he can play his average this coming year, that would mean he can wind up with 1,154 and hit the milestone for his 1,100th games played.

Oct 30, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

33,000 Minutes Played

After 15 seasons and more than a thousand games, Jefferson has logged quite a few minutes. 32,516, to be exact. Not only does Jefferson play the majority of the season at the age of 36, but he also plays several minutes with a career average is 30.1 per game. Last year, however, he only averaged 17.9 minutes per game. If he can play that latter number of minutes over his career average of 72 games, he can play more than 1,200 minutes this year alone. Adding that to his current total would put him at 33,804 total minutes, very comfortably past the 33,000th minute milestone.

Jun 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) shoots the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Shaun Livingston (34) during the first quarter in game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

5,000th Field Goal

With so many minutes comes so many field goals. Currently, Jefferson has 4,985, which means he’s just 15 shy of hitting his 5,000th field goal. So it’s almost a given that he’ll hit that mark, but his averages back up the likelihood even more. He has a career average of 4.6 field goals per game and a 2015-16 average of 1.9. If he can hit that 1.9 over his career average of 72 games, Jefferson can end up with 5,121 total field goals.

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1000th Three-Pointer

And while Jefferson was known for his acrobatic moves earlier in his career, he adapted his game to become a perimeter sharpshooter. He currently has 978 threes in the books. So with just 22 more to 1,000, plus his ability to knock down the three, he’ll likely hit that milestone. Moreover, he averages 0.9 threes for his career (and for 2015-16), so at that rate, he can hit 64 threes this year. That would bring his total to 1,042, putting him comfortably past the 1,000th three pointer mark.

Jun 10, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) shoots the ball against Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) in game four of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

3,500th Free Throw

Jefferson may not get to the free throw line as much these days as he used to, but it doesn’t mean we won’t see him hit a milestone there. He currently has 3,478 total, so with just 22 more, Jefferson can hit the 3,500 mark. He has a career average of 3.2, but a 2015-16 average of just 0.8. If he can hit those 0.8 free throws per game over his career average of 72 games, Jefferson would get 57 this year. That would put him past the 3,500th milestone at a total of 3,537.

Feb 18, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) grabs a rebound ahead of Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson (22) during the second half at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs won 106-95. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

4,600th Total Rebound

Not only can Jefferson shoot the ball, but he can also rebound. After 15 years in the NBA, he has accumulated exactly 4,500 total rebounds. While his career average is 4.2 rebounds per game, he only averaged 1.7 last year. But at that rate over his career average of 72 games, Jefferson can get a total of 4,622 rebounds. That puts him past the 4,600th mark.

3,700th Defensive Rebound

Jefferson can also hit milestones in both defensive and offensive rebounds. As of right now, he has 3,613 defensive rebounds, which means he only needs 87 to reach 3,700. Jefferson averaged 1.5 defensive rebounds last year, so if he can get that number over 72 games, he can wind up with 3,721. That puts him past the 3,700th defensive rebound milestone.

900th Offensive Rebound

On the other end of the floor, Jefferson has 887 offensive rebounds. With just 13 more, he can hit 900. He averaged 0.2 offensive rebounds last year with the Cavs, so at that rate over 72 games, he can grab 14. That’s just enough to get that 900th offensive rebound.

Jun 8, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson (24) dunks the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Shaun Livingston (34) in game three of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

14,800th Point

After 15 seasons in the NBA, averaging 72 games per season and 30 minutes per game, it’s no surprise that Jefferson has scored many, many points. Right now he has a total of 14,426 points and a career average of 13.3 points per game. However, last year he averaged just 5.5 per game, which makes sense given his age and the Cavs’ depth. If he can score his 2015-16 average of 5.5 points per game over 72 games, Jefferson can end up with 396 points for the year. Adding that to his current total would put him at 14,822 points, just over the milestone for his 14,800th point.

How big of a contributor do you think Richard Jefferson will be to the Cleveland Cavaliers this season? Let us know in the comments section or on Twitter @KJG_NBA.

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