NCAA Basketball: Best player on eastern semifinal 2019 NBA playoff teams

Philadelphia 76ers – JJ Redick

From Philly, could it have been anyone else? Well, absolutely not. Redick is the most statistically dominant jump shooter in the history of college basketball, and he looks like my dad. His basketball reference page left me completely flabbergasted. A 6-4 small bodied white shooting guard averaged 26.8 points per game, and for Duke, who won between 26-34 games every year Redick was there.

The sheer totality of Redick’s shooting statistics is utterly baffling. As a senior, he shot 42.1% from beyond the arc on over 9 attempts per game. That’s Fletcher Magee DNA, except while wearing the most prestigious laundry in the nation at the time (a Duke jersey) and scoring a profound 26.8 points per contest. I’d bet my life savings (a small wager, ironically) that Redick is the greatest off-screen shooter in the history of the sport, at any level.

The historic sniper can peel off screens and connect on shots across the court, no matter the situation, the angle, or the distance. From mid-court on, Redick is a lethal weapon. His role in the NBA represents exactly what he is: a shooter. His inaugural few seasons at the professional level were rocky and ridden with inconsistency in terms of minutes and offensive role. His shooting numbers sustained, however, and eventually, his sharpshooting talent was properly valued by evolving franchises.

Redick aged into the modern NBA. His ability to snake through screens and hit open threes at a 40% clip are traits of extreme value to current NBA merchants Darryl Morey and Bob Myers.  As long as Redick is in shape and remains a reliable shooter, he will have a contract.

Redick is very similar to the player he was at Duke, only, the average distance of his shots has doubled. He was always a pure shooter who zipped off screens and knocked down open shots; but now, he occupies the same role, but as primarily a three-point threat rather than a two-point assassin.