Once upon a time, Mark Jackson coached Richard Jefferson.
Think back to a time when Jackson was the head coach of the Golden State Warriors. They were engaged in their first playoff series in six years back in 2012-13. This was before Stephen Curry became the most unstoppable offensive force in the NBA and before fans thought it was possible that the Warriors would shatter the single-season wins record.
Jefferson was a role player for Golden State at the time. Considering his 11 years of experience, he was expected to bring a steady veteran presence to a very young Warriors team.
However, it was two key free throws that Jefferson missed that would end up being the most memorable moment of his short Warriors career. During game 1 of a first-round playoff series versus the San Antonio Spurs, Jefferson missed two free throws with Golden State up by eight points with two minutes remaining. The Warriors would blow the lead and the game would end in a double-overtime defeat for Golden State.
Jackson has clearly not forgotten about this, as he made reference to it during commentary of Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals:
“Guy’s a pro. Stays ready. Played for me in Golden State. Cost us a series in San Antonio, missing two free throws, but I’m not holding onto that. Still has plenty in the tank and playing at a high level for this Cavaliers team.”
Jackson was probably making a joke out of it more than anything. Considering the Warriors were up by eight points even after Jefferson's missed free throws, it was more of an indication that Golden State just wasn't a better team than San Antonio at the time. The Warriors ended up losing that series in six games back in 2013.
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