Richard Jefferson had been one of the faces of the New Jersey Nets, leading them during one of their most successful stretches in franchise history.

On Friday, Jefferson - New Jersey's second all-time leading scorer - faces his former team for the first time since they traded him in the offseason when the Milwaukee Bucks host the Nets.

Jefferson scored 8,507 points during his time in New Jersey, trailing only Buck Williams on the franchise's all-time scoring list. He, along with Jason Kidd, led the Nets to six straight playoff appearances from 2002-07, including trips to the NBA finals in 2002 and 2003.

After Kidd's trade to Dallas in 2007, though, the Nets began making plans for the future, and Jefferson's large contract wasn't a part of it. During the summer, they traded him to Milwaukee for forwards Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons.

Jefferson had three years and $42 million left on his contact.

"I didn't know anything was going on and then the next thing I know my phone didn't stop ringing for about a week," he said in July. "When this happened I was upset, but after calming down and evaluating everything I became excited."

Jefferson is averaging 17.3 points and 5.0 rebounds with the Bucks (17-20), who have alternated wins and losses in their last eight games. He's coming off one of his best games of the season after scoring 27 points on 10-of-19 shooting in Milwaukee's 110-105 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday. Jefferson had been held to an average of 13.4 points in the previous five games.

Like Jefferson, Yi faces his former team looking to build off one of his best performances since the trade. He scored 20 points in a 100-89 win over Memphis on Wednesday, giving him back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career.

Yi was the sixth overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Bucks, but was less than enthused to be playing in Milwaukee, as he preferred a city with a larger Chinese influence. The 6-foot-11 forward averaged 8.6 points and 5.2 rebounds with the Bucks.

The Bucks are hoping that Jefferson can help them snap a four-game losing streak against the Nets. New Jersey has beaten Milwaukee in nine of the last 10 meetings.

The Nets (18-18) have surprised many despite the loss of Jefferson. They are looking to win their third straight overall and move above .500 for the first time in three weeks. They've won three of their last four, although all of those wins gave come at home.

Wednesday's win came despite the absence of leading scorer Devin Harris, who played 18 minutes in a victory over the Sacramento Kings on Monday after sitting out Saturday's loss to Miami because of a sore right hamstring. Harris is averaging a team-leading 23.1 points.

In Harris' absence Wednesday, Keyon Dooling made his fifth start of the season in his place, and had nine points and a season-high eight assists. Vince Carter had 25 points and 12 assists.

"We did a good job of moving the ball," Dooling told the Nets' official Web site. "With Devin down we had to rely on each other a lot more. Usually he is creating for himself and others. Tonight, we had to do it as a group."

Coach Lawrence Frank said he hopes to have Harris, a Milwaukee native, back on Friday. Harris has averaged 10.1 points in nine career games against the Bucks.