Former Cleveland Cavaliers small forward Richard Jefferson has come out in support of his championship run teammate Matthew “Delly” Dellavedova after Draymond Green spoke his mind on the former point guard, known for being gritty and physical.
Jefferson made it clear that even if Dellavedova was not one of the marquee names, he was an integral member of that championship run.
“Why is Delly catching strays? First of all, if people knew how good you are at basketball, you’d have to s*** in the NBA… Are we being real right now?” the former Cavaliers small forward said, appearing on the Road Trippin podcast.
During their historical run, Dellavedova was tasked with one of the most crucial assignments of the Finals series against the Golden State Warriors, defending Stephen Curry.
His contribution did not necessarily show up on the stat sheet like LeBron James or Kyrie Irving. However, it was intangibles that made him a fan favorite, and those who followed the series closely knew how pivotal the point guard was in keeping Curry as quiet as possible through rigorous defensive play.
“Was Delly the ultimate underdog? Yes. Delly battled his way… Delly would literally die for you. Give me that man in battle, any single day! Not practice, but in the game. Let’s put it this way, Delly had some dawg in him where he was d-ing up Kyrie so hard, it didn’t go well.” Jefferson added.
He was a force off the bench. When Cavaliers starters found themselves hurt, tired, or in foul trouble, Dellavedova was instrumental in keeping the team’s flow going and preventing the opponent from blowing out leads.
The criticism Green had for Dellavedova was during a segment on Kai Cenat’s stream, where he was explaining how James is the GOAT because he had to make do with players like Dellavedova while Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen to help him.
Well, Dellavedova was playing 24.6 minutes a game that season, and averaged 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. His shooting percentage was 41% from the three-point line and 40.5% from the field.
His support was crucial for the Cavaliers to go for the deep run, even while being faced with injuries and setbacks. Talking about his grit, James once compared him to a bear.
“If there was a bear right here and there was Delly right here and I shot the ball and I was wondering who would get to the ball first, Delly would tear that damn bear up,” James said after the Cavaliers won it all.
During their championship parade, his teammates were surprised by his popularity amongst Cleveland fans, who saw how Dellavedova gave it his all on the court.
The love and reverence that his teammates and the Cavaliers fans have shown for Dellavedova depict that his role was much greater than what Green is painting it out to be based on his stats and skill level. That’s what Jefferson was referring to in his defense.
