Richard Jefferson Sr., the father of longtime NBA veteran Richard Jefferson, was killed in a drive-by shooting in California on Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. 
 
 Jefferson Sr., 65, was shot Wednesday evening in Compton and pronounced dead at an area hospital later that night. 
 
 Investigators do not know the motive at this time, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department told ESPN in a statement Thursday, and homicide bureau detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the shooting. 
 
 Richard Jefferson played 17 seasons in the NBA, winning a championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 as a key role player off the bench. The 37-year-old forward is currently a free agent after averaging 8.2 minutes per game in 20 appearances with the Denver Nuggets last season and has started to pursue a post-playing career in broadcast journalism, appearing on ESPN and other networks. 
 
 Jefferson's parents split when he was young, and the basketball star grew up in Glendale, Arizona, with his mother. His father lived in California. 
 
 Jefferson and his father grew closer in recent years, sources told ESPN, with Jefferson, his wife and two children spending their summers in Los Angeles' South Bay, not far from Jefferson Sr.'s home in Inglewood. 

 The father of NBA champion Richard Jefferson was reportedly killed in a drive-by shooting in California Wednesday night. 
 
 According to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, Richard Allen Jefferson, the 65-year-old father of the basketball player, was shot and killed in Compton after several gunshots were fired from a dark-colored vehicle. 
 
 Jefferson was hit multiple times in the torso and pronounced dead at the hospital. 
 
 The younger Jefferson, 38, played 17 seasons in the NBA, including seven with the then-New Jersey Nets and last season with the Denver Nuggets. He won a championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2015, as well as a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. 
 
 It’s unclear if Jefferson Sr. was targeted in the shooting.
– NBA champion Richard Jefferson's father was killed Wednesday night in a drive-by shooting, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Per TMZ, Richard Jefferson Sr., 65, was in front of a liquor store in a mostly residential area of Compton, Calif., when a vehicle approached and someone inside started shooting. The senior Jefferson was reportedly pronounced dead at a hospital. An investigation is underway, and authorities are unsure whether he was the intended target. The younger Jefferson played 17 seasons in the NBA and won a championship in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers. His parents separated when he was a child. He grew up in Arizona, while his dad lived in California. The father and son had become closer in recent years, ESPN reports.