Richard Jefferson: Jason Kidd Was a Distraction

As far as Richard Jefferson is concerned, the team was distracted by the situation surrounding a certain former teammate.

"I’m not going to lie," Jefferson said Thursday, "we were dead men walking with the Jason Kidd situation."

Jefferson was referring to Kidd’s desire to be traded from the team, which the future Hall of Fame point guard made public in late January, the day after the Nets had lost a ninth straight game.

However, Jefferson confirmed yesterday what many had already known, that Kidd’s unhappiness with the team was a not-so-well-kept secret inside the locker room. Jefferson said that made it difficult for the Nets to concentrate on priority No.1 - advancing to the playoffs for the seventh straight year. [NY Daily News]