Great post, Rockets Dynasty. I'm a strong Redick supporter, as you probably know. I've been cautious in my expectations for him, as the NBA is a huge shock to most college players. He would still be an important contributor to our team if all he did was match the pessimistic end of my assessments, which is why I want him on our team. But if you're even half right about him (Michael Redd? yum), I will be jumping for joy.
Of course expecting him to be as good as Redd would be putting way too much expectation on any pick in this draft save maybe Morrison. But nonetheless he sure looks eerily like Redd. People forget that Redd was viewed less than Redick is now. But like Redick they misjudged. For example Redick (like Redd) has a very high release point on his J and gets tremendous elevation on the jumper as well as releasing the ball at the peak of the jump and the top of the release point. When you combine that with perfect form, flawless mechanics, outstanding range, soft touch, excellent rtation on the ball, and a lightning quick release that needs hardly any space to get off the shot, you have players that WILL get the shot off at will. It's not a Kareem Rush comparison.
Don't know how. It says that Redick has been a surprise and impressive in all aspects of the game including his shooting. Boston at #7 and the rockets are in serious contention for him. Chad Ford thinks that J.J will eventually be the 3rd best player on the rockets. He sounds very confident that the rockets will draft him at #8.
I echo this poster's sentiments, with the caveat that I've watched pretty darn near EVERY SINGLE Redick game on TV during his collegiate career... Him being on the same floor with Yao and Tracy will make a huge difference in his offense production, considering that opponents could always liberally double off of Sean Dockery, Lee Melchionni, Greg Paulus and Josh McRoberts last year to force Redick to give up the ball. Everyone talks about how Garrett Temple or Rodney Carney clamped down Redick in the LSU, Memphis games respectively, but there are a couple of things to remember. First, in those games, Redick was still able to get his shots, they just didn't fall. Every shooter has off games. Second, it was by no means a one-man lock down of Redick, LSU and Memphis both helped liberally to stop Redick from driving past Temple/Carney. I thought I was the first to come up with the Redd comparison (in a thread sometime around February); but I guess great minds do think alike...
The more and more I think about it, I want Redick on our team. Many times over the years have I wanted that weak side shooter and many times they haven't been there. I think Redick could be a very important piece to this team and will not be the next Trajon Langdon. Redick has more right now.
Rockets Dynasty, You're trying to argue the already established point of Redick being primarily a catch-and-shoot kind of player and you're really not making a believer out of me. Some of your points are valid but then you go and make a dubious claim like "90% of his offense is created by himself" (completely untrue) then contradict your own argument by emphasizing how effective he is coming off of screens, which is practically the only offense Duke runs--which you should know since you've seen him play so much, right? -He can't handle the ball, not even close. He can't drive without taking more than two dribbles and he's an average passer at best. -I've never seen him dunk the ball as you've mentioned, although I would hope he would be able to at 6'3". -I'm sure he's a better athlete than people give him credit for but I have NEVER seen this "extreme quickness with the ball" you've mentioned either. The point is people aren't out to make Redick sound like he's as athletic as a 60-year-old obese woman. They're more or less making the point that Redick has below average athleticism by today's NBA standards. Combine that with his disappointing measurements (both height/wingspan), his lack of playmaking skills and strength, then you have your basis for all of Redick's criticism from a physical standpoint. I love the guy's ability to shoot the ball and we could really use that, but his shortcomings in other areas are simply too hard to ignore.
Yeah I'm not sure what he means by that. Morrison could not play for them? Alridge? But anyway from the Seattle workout they were "very impressed" with Redick, Orlando said, "he's our guy if he's there" Reportedly he dominated Foye in the Seattle workout, mind you Foye is considered maybe the best defender at guard in the draft.
There's no way you have watched that much of him play. The sentiments are just not possible for someone who has watched him a lot.
I didn't want to start another JJ Redick thread so here is the latest news from ESPN's Chad Ford: Redick rising like a Rocket posted: Wednesday, June 7, 2006 | Feedback • For Chad Ford's preview of the Top 10 players to watch at the Orlando pre-draft camp, click here. From the NBA's perspective, one of the biggest questions of the college basketball season was this: Will J.J. Redick be a good pro? Can college basketball's Player of the Year become an elite NBA player? Or is he little more than a sharp-shooting role player, like Kyle Korver and Steve Kerr? Scouts have leaned toward the latter all year. Their concerns? His size for a shooting guard, his lack of athleticism, his defensive inadequacies and the one-dimensional nature of his game. But is there a point when you overthink a guy? His success at Duke was so dominant that the question must be asked, if he can do it against the best players in college basketball every night, why can't he do it in the pros? The early word back from workouts in places like Houston, Utah and Boston has been surprisingly positive. Sources with all three teams have said the same thing to me. Redick is better than they thought he would be. He's tested well in the athletic drills teams take him through. His defense has been aggressive in one-on-one sessions. He's shown the ability to create and make his own shot against some of the best college players in the draft. Even a guy who's been scouted and scouted and scouted can surprise folks. "I'm actually not a huge believer in individual workouts," one NBA executive said. "However, I think we learned a lot about that kid and it was all good. In almost every area, including shooting, he was better than we thought. You can watch him in games and see that he can really play. But it wasn't until the workouts that you could really see that he may be able to do some of those same things against NBA athletes. He's not going to be the MVP of the league or anything. But he's going to be a good player in the league." How good? Good enough that Redick appears to be in the conversation with the Celtics at No. 7 and in serious consideration by the Rockets at No. 8. In my first mock draft, I put Redick at No. 8, because he appeared to be a good fit for the Rockets. With Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady getting double-teamed on a nightly basis, Redick should have plenty of wide open jumpers. No one in the draft would be better at hitting them. But after Redick's workout, I think the Rockets see him as a kid who could eventually become the third best player on their team and as a gritty competitor who should be able to step right in and contribute. There's no question the Rockets want to be back in the playoff hunt next season. Besides Redick, Brandon Roy, who's unlikely to slip to No. 8, is probably the only guy in the draft who could play for the Rockets right now. If the Rockets don't take Redick at No. 8, he'll likely go to either the Magic at No. 11 or the Jazz at No. 14. But until I hear differently, I think that 8 may be Redick's magic number.
1) Redick is more than athletic enough to be a good player at the NBA level... 2) Measurements don't define a basketball player 3) Playmaking isn't Redick's role on offensive end - his job is to score. It's your point guard's job, i.e. Rafer 4) Redick is more than strong enough to be a good player at the NBA level Ultimately, it's about how good of a basketball player are you; at every level, Redick has been one of the very best in the country... same cannot be said for Carney, Collins, Ager, Foye, or any of the other wing players being considered
Rockets made trade deal with the Raptors!!1 http://games.espn.go.com/nba/featur...s=351~825~1977~1051~2792&teams=28~28~10~10~10
For those of us without insider, would you be so kinds as to cut and paste. Thanks, (edit) sorry I see that it was posted above....GREAT NEWS, I love being right. DD
Well i'm glad you hold Redick in such high esteem, just do me a favor and go tell every single scout saying otherwise that Redick is "more than athletic enough" and apparently he's clearly strong enough to succeed and that they're all wrong. Your other two points are common sense/irrelevant. And while you're doing that, set up a PayPal account so you can donate to the Tip Jar.
