NBA DRAFT

June 23, 2026

Joshua Jefferson

Q. You came off a terrible injury in the tournament, and now does that make the moment feel a lot better for you? How much have you just been waiting for this moment, getting back to the court and moving forward?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: When that injury happened, I feel like a lot of things was jeopardized from that. Going into pre-draft, I was like, make the most out of your workouts and attack your rehab hard and everything will go how it needs to go.

Very blessed for this position that I'm in and just very thankful.

Q. Just curious, throughout the pre-draft process what level of communication you had with the Nets' front office, coaching staff, and if you did have communication, just what they said about how they feel you can fit in?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: It was really good feedback, from the late first round, from all the front office, just seeing what they need for their team. They felt that I fit in a lot of spots because of my versatility.

I think I'm where I need to be. The Nets took a great chance on me, and I'm very thankful for that.

Q. Either from your own opinion or any kind of feedback that you may have gotten from the Nets, what do you think about your game will translate pretty quickly in the NBA, and what kind of things do you think you'll need to tighten up or work on to become the player that you want to be?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: I think the thing about my game that's going to translate pretty quickly is my physicality. The NBA is a physical game right now. You have to be physical in the playoffs to win, and that's what I'm going to bring.

And then just continue to work on my shot. Shooting it really well throughout this pre-draft process, a lot of reps. So I think if I continue do that, it's going to keep me on the floor. And defending, on both sides.

Q. This coaching staff has talked over the years a lot about making decisions quickly. How big a part of the game is making decisions quickly and playing for others?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: Yeah, my processing skills is something I've been working on since I was a kid, child. Repping that out over time is something I'm naturally gifted at and something I'm just going to max out in the opportunities they give me. I'm going to have a lot of confidence when I'm on the floor and just play through my teammates.

Q. You're now entering a forward rotation that features Michael Porter Jr. and Julius Randle, obviously very proven players. How do you feel about playing alongside those guys and the potential to learn from them?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: It's a great opportunity. So much knowledge between the two. I'm just going to be a sponge, asking them questions all the time and learning as much as I can. They have been through the ups and downs of the league. It's going to be on me to make sure that I'm seeking the information.

Q. I know every player is different, but when you try to explain what your game is like to people that may not have seen you play, is there any players you look at at the NBA level that say, hey, that's what you can expect from me when I step on the floor?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: Yeah, I think there's a lot of shades of Draymond and his connectedness on both sides of the floor. Jaylin Williams, the big version from the Thunder, the dirty work that he does. Just the ball skills that any of the big forwards have, like Naz Reid, Julius Randle, Paolo, just all those big guards. I think I have a little bit of that. Just a combination of all those things, and a guy that can do everything on the court.

Q. So obviously Julius Randle is now in the fold in Brooklyn and you're both big forwards who can see the floor very well and have great processing. From that standpoint, how excited are you to work with Julius Randle and refine that area of your game right away?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: It's going to be huge for me. I watched a lot of Julius Randle film throughout my senior season. It helped me a lot seeing his mid-post, post-up work is a work of art, my opinion.

I'm just going to use him as a resource to improve my game and then just get a lot of assists off of him.

Q. What made you watch Julius Randle?

JOSHUA JEFFERSON: I really enjoy watching bigger forwards that have a lot of ball skills on the perimeter. Something that you can learn from. Just seeing their pace and just the rhythm that they play with is really important for bigger guards to play with, when so many little guards are trying to get up into you and take the ball from you.

Just seeing his pace and his physicality when he uses finesse and physicality.