http://www.hoopsworld.com/article_21431.shtml after reading this, you can't help but think what a guy... <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">There aren't many folks nationally who understand why Warrior Nation embraces Jason Richardson the way they do. Without following the Golden Gaters consistently, the passion Warrior fans display towards Richardson can be misconstrued as a fandom based upon flashy dunks and entertainment value. But ask yourself this - if Richardson was just a dunker, would Warrior fans have lamented the way they did and been as angry as they were earlier this week when reports surfaced that he may be traded? Richardson is the heart and soul of this Warrior team - and perhaps, the franchise itself. Sure, Baron Davis is the team's leader on the court and the Warriors perform better when he plays (the team is 8-3 in games Davis has played in since returning from knee surgery), but Richardson's connection to Warrior fans is deeper for one reason - effort. Despite five losing seasons, an unstable coaching carousel, and questionable effort from other Warrior players, Richardson brings it every single night on that court. Never does anyone question if he's in the best shape that he can be in or whether he's ready to play. He is notorious for his offseason regimen, improving an aspect of his game and constantly getting better. Last season, after the Warriors failed to make the playoffs for the twelfth straight season, Richardson led an effort to take a full-page ad in local newspapers to tell the fans they deserved better. Although Richardson is loved by the fans, he rarely gets the attention he deserves from analysts and critics nationwide. His stats and the way he had carried the Warriors the past few years have been worthy of All-Star recognition, but detractors typically only see Richardson's highlights and assume he's still "just a dunker." The lack of success for the Warriors undoubtedly kept Richardson affixed in the category of an underrated player and it almost seemed like he'd never get his due, despite crashing the boards hard and increasing his scoring average every year until now. Injuries have held him back this season, but through it all, Richardson is still standing and overcoming every obstacle in his career. He's proven detractors wrong on many occasions, whether it be criticism that he was drafted too high or that he simply cannot be the complete player expected of him. With a terrific performance on national TV against the Phoenix Suns, Richardson displayed his complete array of offensive firepower on Thursday night. He scored from the outside (8-13 from beyond the arc) and he slashed to the basket (shot 14-23 overall) en route to amassing 36 points and grabbing 12 rebounds without even getting to the charity stripe. Given a stage to show how much he has grown as a player, Richardson responded with arguably his best game of the year, making the statement that he won't go by the wayside in the minds of critics for much longer. In this Basketball News Services exclusive interview, Richardson provides a glimpse into who he is, how he got there, and why every team in the league would love to have a guy like him on their roster. Let me take you back to when you got drafted - there were people that said you weren't mature enough for the NBA after your sophomore year and now you're one of the leaders on this team. Monta said that it's you and Baron as the two voices. When you look at how far you've grown, what do you attribute this maturity development to? I think part of it is just growing up. Going through all the things I've been through being an NBA player - having five different coaches, having coaches not liking me, the fans cheering me on - so much of that attributes to where I'm at today that got me mature to grow up. The other thing that you've had to sort of break through is your reputation as a dunker. What do you think you've done to sort move past that? You know, all my life I've been fighting for being known as a complete player. Ever since high school, that's all people knew me for is dunking - I love doing it and it's a part of my game, but it's more inside of me just to be known more than just a dunker. So I've put in hours and hours of work just shooting and dribbling and shooting and dribbling just to become a complete player. I did do the dunk think earlier in my career but they know that I'm one of the top guards in the league, could be considered with some of the best. Do you consider yourself to be one of the best? I'm a work in progress still. I still want to be considered one of the best, but it's a long list of guys. I feel like I'm close enough and I'm getting there, but there's still a lot of things that I have to work on to get to that level. Health has kind of been up and down for you, and this season you've got a couple things nagging and you've just kind of battled through them. When you get a full season under your belt - maybe next season, hopefully. (Laughs) Yea. Do you feel like you're going to be able to vault yourself into All-Star status in the Western Conference? I believe so. I think, more than anything, my concern is winning with this team. This season hasn't went the way I've wanted it to - injury, surgery, broken hand, stuff like that - but I think a person that goes through adversity just becomes a stronger person and a stronger player. I've been through it all; you name it I've been through it. It's just going to make me stronger. My first thing next year is getting this team to win. Once you win, all the success comes with the team, then you start getting the individual awards. I know I could have been an All-Star the last two seasons if we were winning, but right now my main thing is winning. Six years under your belt now, almost, and you've really dealt with losing. Can you talk about the toll that losing has taken? I mean, you won a National Championship at MSU - I mean what was that like? Those were some of the best moments of my life, those two years at Michigan State. I think that's where I got a lot of my toughness from, a lot of my love of basketball. It was tough coming here and losing. I couldn't stomach it, there were nights when I couldn't sleep because we were losing and we were getting blown out. Just seeing guys, earlier in my career, they didn't really care about winning and it was just about collecting checks. It ate at me every night and it kind of got to me and made me work hard. I had a will to just keep playing, even when I'm hurt, just continue to play and try to win games. I think that made me stronger as a player just to go out there and play ball. Where you grew up in Saginaw, it's not really known as a basketball area since it's sort of a football town. Other than your natural ability, what drove you towards basketball? Saginaw is a small city, we had more kids go for football than basketball, but we had did have some good players that came out for basketball. We had a guy named Mark Macon, who played in the NBA for about seven or eight years. Terrence Roberson, who I think was the first person to be Parade All-American four times since his freshman year of high school. So we had guys there and I looked up to guys like that to play basketball - I always could jump and I could always do that and I played football and stuff, but I knew I had a better chance making it in basketball. You were talking about how guys were playing for the money more than being motivated to win. When did you see a shift toward the kind of team you have now where effort is there on a consistent basis? I think I started seeing the shift my third, fourth year. We started getting different guys, veteran guys. I'm not saying that the guys I was here with my first few years weren't about winning, we were just all young and we had no guidance. We didn't really have much veteran leadership, guys that have actually won championships and stuff like that. It was kind of like a whole bunch of kids just playing basketball. We had no guidance and my third, fourth year, we started getting veteran players, guys that have been to Western Conference championships, guys that have won championships, and we started to learn from them and picked up habits that they did, finding out little ways to make yourself a better player. I think that's when the change came around - we were still losing, but I started picking up little things on how to win and how to carry yourself and how to be a professional in the sport. Who helped you develop the vocal leadership that you embody now? I think the person I'd have to say is Calbert Cheaney. He's not a real talkative guy, but just the way he carried himself as a professional. I think everybody should look at him to see how to be a professional. He came in, never said a word, worked hard, and was always about the team first. There were just so many things about his character that I picked up. He would just talk to me all the time and I looked up to him - he was like a big brother when I was in my third or fourth year. You miss having him around? Yea, of course. Calbert was a great guy. We still talk once in a while, but the qualities he shared about being a great pro and how you carry yourself on and off the court, I took that from him. What do you attribute this revitalized winning attitude to? I attribute it to everything. The organization has been backing us for a while. It's been a situation about getting the right guys in the right places, getting a coaching staff that believe in its player and players that believe in themselves. That's the main thing. We have guys that believe in themselves, believe in the team first. When you have that on top of having a very talented team - I think we have about six or seven guys that on any given night can give you twenty points a night - when you have guys like that with that focus and that unselfishness just to win games, you can be a successful team. I think we can be a really good team if we keep the same squad, the same nucleus that we have, but we just have to have a whole, healthy year together to show people we can be a real good team. Can you talk a little bit about the difference in the coaching staff from Musselman to Montgomery to now - you've seen three very different coaches. I don't want to necessarily talk about those guys since they're doing their own thing and we ought to respect that, but when you look at instruction, game plans, and stuff like that, what is this coaching staff really doing for you personally? I think one thing with Nellie - he's honest and he's up front with you. He lets you know what he expects from you, he lets you know if you can't do something. He's just up front with you and when you have a coach like that that you can go talk to about anything, that can come to you and talk to you about anything, it makes you as a player work hard for him. I believe that Nellie is trying to do everything he can for us to try to win and just the way he comes at the game plan and lets guys know exactly what they need to do without coming behind somebody's back or going to the newspapers first. If you're messing up, he lets you know in front of the whole team and you can't ask for any more honesty in a coach than what Nellie gives you. Nellie's definition of dominance is that you have to shoot, have to dominate your guy on the low block, and you have to be able to pass. He said the one thing that's holding you back from being dominant is your ability to pass, draw that double team and dish it out, which is why Nellie considers Baron the only dominant guy on this team. Do you agree with that assessment? Yea, I think so, but I think every game I'm getting better at it. I don't want to put you down or anything! (Laughs) No, no, that's just how Nellie is. He's honest. That's one thing I need have to learn. I think I'm learning that every game - (seven assists) - so I'm learning every game. So I'm learning. I'm the type of guy that wants to understand what I'm not doing right so I can go correct myself and do it right. Now that we've got so different guys on this team that can score and are able to carry the load, that I don't have to do so much as I have been the past two, three years. I'm willing to pass the ball and willing to give it up, so I have no problem with that. You typically work real hard over the summer - is that what you're planning on working on over the summer? (Smiles) Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Last thing and I'll let you go: you've kind of taken up the feelings of the fans so much more than anyone else, with the newspaper ad last season that you spearheaded - all this that you're doing for the fans. What do you want to say to them - just say what you're feeling right now? Of course, I thank our fans every chance I get. Just being here for six years - my first year I think we won like 17 games and we were still getting 12,000 fans. We have the most supportive fans in all of the NBA. They've always been loyal and have always had our back and they're just waiting for us to get to that next level. Once we get to that next level, coming to the ORACLE Arena is going to be hard place to play because our fans are there and are so loyal and they want so much out of us. That's what keeps me driving - our fans - because they deserve better than what I have been giving them the past five years. They deserve a winning team because they're so loyal and so supportive. I mean, our season tickets have been going up every year and we're still losing, but they know that something's coming and that's why I try to thank them and try to show them as much appreciation as I can because they've been so loyal to us and they've been backing us even when we haven't been as good as we should be. Alright, thanks a lot, Jason. You got it, buddy. There are just so many things Richardson touches on throughout the interview that can clue anyone into why Warriors fans want to see him finish his career in the Golden Gate orange and Midnight blue. Obviously, Richardson's talents on the floor are well documented, but it's the quality of character he displays off of it that makes him as valuable as any other superstar in the league. The passion Richardson brings to the table is one unparalleled throughout the league and he shows a genuine interest in making himself a better player, day in and day out. Focusing on his passing skills, Richardson has averaged 4.5 assists per game in March as he tries to become more of the dominant player Don nelson would like him to be. He's a team player, focusing on the achievements of the team before his own. He understands the history of the game and has players he looks up to and respects, checking his ego at the door and enjoying his humble pie as he learns from those that came before him. He loves the game with a fervor, leading him to attempt to perfect his craft and lead his teammates to do so as well. Maybe most importantly, though, Jason Richardson is fueled by a sense of obligation. An obligation to himself to be the best he can be. An obligation to his teammates to bring them the success they covet in their careers. And most certainly an obligation to the fans whose energy motivates and pushes him towards improvement. Every team would love a player enthused by a fire within because he can inevitably improve those around him. Finally, the Warriors are becoming what Richardson has been for five years - fiery, passionate, and team-oriented, willing to do whatever they can to win games. For that reason alone. this organization finds itself on the steady rise, just one game out of the playoffs. As Richardson said, should this squad be kept together with an added piece here and there, do not be surprised by how good they are. As they are now, they're already scaring the top teams in the West. </div>
Yeah, I love Jrich, warts and all... The only way we can trade him is for a no brainer deal for an All Star big man like KG, Bosh, Gasol etc...
Good article, although I think when he was saying how important the fans are, how they drive the Warriors, I think a natural followup question would be "Then how do you win on the road?"
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting JRich:</div><div class="quote_post">Of course, I thank our fans every chance I get. Just being here for six years - my first year I think we won like 17 games and we were still getting 12,000 fans. We have the most supportive fans in all of the NBA. They've always been loyal and have always had our back and they're just waiting for us to get to that next level. Once we get to that next level, coming to the ORACLE Arena is going to be hard place to play because our fans are there and are so loyal and they want so much out of us. That's what keeps me driving - our fans - because they deserve better than what I have been giving them the past five years. They deserve a winning team because they're so loyal and so supportive. I mean, our season tickets have been going up every year and we're still losing, but they know that something's coming and that's why I try to thank them and try to show them as much appreciation as I can because they've been so loyal to us and they've been backing us even when we haven't been as good as we should be.</div> That's why I love this guy. He's made it so rewarding to be a fan, just to see him work his ass off for the fans every year. Every year he's gotten better and better. He refuses to pretend that he has no weaknesses; instead, he is EAGER to find his weakness and eliminate it. FIrst it was shooting, then the left hand, then jumping off one foot, then 3-point shooting, then free throws, then rebounding -- every year he's searched for the thing that he can most improve for the next season, and then he totally obliterates that weakness. Well, not really freethrows, yet, but everything else, he's turned from a weakness into a STRENGTH -- that's the sign of a GREAT player. Though it makes sense to trade JRich if it lands a premier big man, I'd still hate to give him up. I think the trade talk has been easier because of his injuries and struggles, but watch next year when he averages 23 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast, and 2 stls per game. NO ONE will want to trade him then.
As long as Stephen Jackson keeps filling in the role of point small forward/shooting guard and there's Baron Davis to lead the way, it definitely sets up guys like Jrich to do the Shawn Marion offense thing at the shooting guard position. We're talking inside finishing, cutting to the rim, alley oop plays, shooting threes, rebounding, and there's no pressure to initiate/setup the offense (only to continue cycling the ball or finish the play). The great thing about Richardson's game is that he can post up and shoot over most players because of his vertical leap, long arms, and his finesse while fading away. If both Sjax and Jrich are on the same page, that's a pretty decent cross-position two-three combo, especially when Jrich has been passing the way he has in the last few games (4 assists a game) in the last 7. Sjax is also averaging the same assist numbers in the last 7, but with 4:3 turnover to assist ratio) Richardson has almost 4:1 turnover to assist ratio. But I guess Sjax deserves some leeway because he is creating off the dribble and that's hard for somebody that is 6'8 and is trying to create something out of nothing. The guy ain't Joe Johnson or Lebron James. I think maybe Sjax is more like Mike Miller somewhat in that he can play point at duty.
^Everytime Sjax dribbles I anticipate a turnover. I think he dribbles the ball off his leg or foot more than Jrich
Jason Richardson, like Antawn Jamison, is a great person. I think it was Jamison who set down this type of an ethic here after that Sprewell incident and trading him for Starks, Mills, and Cummings. Then the team decided to pay Jamison the same as Dirk, Pierce, and Carter, which was a mistake. Then he got traded. As a fan, I return Jason's sympathy with my own sympathy to him for playing with so many different coaches and several bad ones too, indeed (along with players like Foyle and Dunleavy).
<div class="quote_poster">Clif25 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Jason Richardson, like Antawn Jamison, is a great person. I think it was Jamison who set down this type of an ethic here after that Sprewell incident and trading him for Starks, Mills, and Cummings. Then the team decided to pay Jamison the same as Dirk, Pierce, and Carter, which was a mistake. Then he got traded. As a fan, I return Jason's sympathy with my own sympathy to him for playing with so many different coaches and several bad ones too, indeed (along with players like Foyle and Dunleavy).</div> I totally agree, Cliff. I think it's also important to note Calbert Cheaney's influence on JRich. He's the "consumate" pro and I'm sure he helped instill good habits in JRich.
<div class="quote_poster">AlleyOop Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I totally agree, Cliff. I think it's also important to note Calbert Cheaney's influence on JRich. He's the "consumate" pro and I'm sure he helped instill good habits in JRich.</div> True to me, I think both Cheaney and NVE were both big on JRich's emergence as a star.
Why cant the Warriors be playing tonight instead of having 2 days off to play Memphis. I guess Baron can use all the rest he can get...
