"The seeds of Michael Finley's discontent were sown the day the Spurs traded for Richard Jefferson.

Finley knew his role would shrink. What he couldn't see was his drop in offensive efficiency after a sprained ankle put him on the shelf far longer than he thought necessary.

Finley's departure changes nothing about Jefferson's importance. If the Spurs are to make noise in the playoffs, he still must be a major contributor.

Gregg Popovich knows this, one reason he vigorously defends Jefferson from suggestions his struggles account for the Spurs' current spot in the Western playoff structure.

"I think the biggest struggle he has is you (media) guys, who try to make it a bigger deal than it is," Popovich said. "And the fact that we haven't already won 50 games, you try to make it all Richard's fault because we traded for Richard.

"Winning or losing takes a team. He's new, along with some other new guys. We've had some returning players who didn't start the season out very well. We've had some injuries and, altogether, it's been hard to put everything together on a consistent basis. We've been a little bit discombobulated for all those reasons, but to just always ask about Richard, or his struggles, I think is way overblown."

Jefferson appreciates Popovich's support but knows a struggle when he sees it from the inside, out.

"It's not hard to hear, because it's true," he says. "I am struggling."

Jefferson leans on his belief that returning to a role more like that of his first eight seasons will produce more games like Sunday's, when he scored 20 off the bench and helped the Spurs beat the Suns.

Popovich isn't asking him to play much power forward lately, and the relief on Jefferson's face is evident.

"Anybody who watches the game with an intelligent eye can see I was doing a lot of things I had never done over the course of my career," he says. "I've never guarded guys like LaMarcus Aldridge. I've never been a swing guy. I've never taken the ball out of bounds."