NCAA Basketball: Ranking the last 25 AP Player of the Year award winners

One of the greatest scorers in Duke history, J.J. Redick put together a senior season that many remember as one of the best scoring performances of the 21st century. While he was edged out by Gonzaga’s Adam Morrison for the scoring title, his ability to get to the free-throw line attempting over half his shots from deep, helped Duke’s offense immensely.

With all that said, one thing working against Redick on this list is his lack of any exceptional production outside of scoring. When he finished the season, he had set the ACC scoring record, but in turn, his rebounding numbers went down, his assist numbers did not rise as fast as his usage and his defense only got marginally better.

Redick’s scoring kept Duke in the top three of the AP Poll for the entire season, even after two straight losses to end the regular season. He was the keystone to the nation’s seventh highest-scoring offense, which broke the 90 points mark eight times that season.

Redick had two jobs for the Blue Devils as a senior: Score and lead. He did them remarkably well. However, because of his relatively limited role (compared with other AP Players of the Year), it is difficult to consider Redick moving outside the bottom five, especially since there is another player on this list that filled the role of a scorer at a higher level.

Redick will remain one of the greatest Duke players of all time. His jersey number has rightfully been retired by Duke. Despite his consistent success in all four seasons, his lack of high production in non-scoring areas puts him at No. 21 on this list.