Ref-ferson? NBA Champ Richard Jefferson to Referee Knicks Summer League Game

Jefferson is best known to Knicks fans as a Garden State menace at the turn of the century.

NBA Summer League games in Las Vegas often market themselves as the place to see the hardwood stars of tomorrow. A star from yesterday, however, is set to oversee one of those contests. 

The Association has announced that tenured veteran and current ESPN analyst Richard Jefferson will take on officiating duties during the New York Knicks' propsects Monday night tilt against those of the Portland Trail Blazers (11 p.m. ET, ESPN2). According to the release, Jefferson has been attending daily Summer League Officiating Meetings and will show what he learned during the second quarter of Monday's action. He will then discuss his experience during the ensuing halftime report. 

NBA Champion and 17-year NBA veteran Richard Jefferson will officiate the second quarter of tonight's New York vs. Portland game after attending daily NBA Summer League Officiating Meetings in Las Vegas.

🏀 @nyknicks vs. @trailblazers
⏰ 8 p.m. PT / 11 p.m. ET
📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/wNKYxjvJYd

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) July 11, 2022

Jefferson partook in 17 NBA seasons after entering as the New Jersey Nets' first-round pick in 2001. He played a major role in the Nets' consecutive trips to the NBA Finals in his first two seasons and he eventually earned a Larry O'Brien Trophy hoist in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

The Arizona alum's time on ESPN (doubling as an NBA analyst for the network while also working with the Nets franchise's YES Network broadcasts) has ruffled the feathers of Knicks fans, as he has often used his platform to unfavorably compare the Knicks to his original employers, who have since moved to New York City.

New York supporters certainly hope that Jefferson's prescience won't derail the positive aura their team has developed over its first two Summer League contests. The Knicks (2-0) got things started with a strong second half on Friday night against Golden State, carrying that momentum to Sunday in the form of a 32-point demolition of the Chicago Bulls' prospects. Quentin Grimes has averaged 24 points over the first two wins while newly re-signed Jericho Sims is putting up a double-double (13.5 points, 10 rebounds).