JJ Redick


Jonathan Clay "JJ" Redick is an American professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association. He was selected 11th overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA draft. He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils.
In college, Redick was known for his good three-point and free throw shooting. He set ACC records during his career for most points and most career ACC tournament points, though his ACC career points record was subsequently broken at UNC in 2009. Redick is currently the all-time leading scorer for Duke. He also set several other Duke records, including most points in a single season. Redick's jersey was retired by Duke on February 4, 2007.
After being drafted by the Magic, he played for seven seasons in Orlando, followed by a short spell with the Milwaukee Bucks, then four seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. In 2017, he signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, and re-signed with them on a one-year deal the following year. In 2019, Redick signed a two-year deal with the New Orleans Pelicans.
In addition to his basketball career, Redick is a podcaster, and hosts a basketball and entertainment podcast for The Ringer.

High school career

Redick was a McDonald's All-American at Cave Spring High School in Roanoke, Virginia, winning the 2002 McDonald's All-American Game MVP. He scored 43 points as a senior in the Virginia state championship game, a game in which the Knights defeated George Wythe High School of Richmond.
Considered a five-star recruit by Scout.com, Redick was highly recruited and listed as the No. 2 shooting guard and the No. 13 player in the nation in 2002.

College career

In his freshman year at Duke University, Redick led his team with 30 points in their victory over NC State in the ACC Tournament championship game. He put up 26 points against Central Michigan in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. However, he struggled in Duke's Sweet Sixteen loss to Kansas, hitting only two of 16 shots.
Redick served as co-captain in his junior year, along with senior point guard Daniel Ewing. He also served as captain his senior year, along with fellow seniors Shelden Williams, Sean Dockery and Lee Melchionni.
In the 2004–05 season, Redick led Duke in scoring with 21.8 points per game. He won the ACC Player of the Year award, and the Adolph F. Rupp Trophy for national player of the year. Redick's victory in the Rupp voting spoiled the consensus for Utah's Andrew Bogut, who won every other major player of the year award. In 2006, after facing close competition all year from Gonzaga's Adam Morrison, Redick won the major player of the year awards.
Redick set a record for the most consecutive free throws made in the ACC with 54. This record began on March 20, 2003, and ended on January 15, 2004. It was broken on January 22, 2012, by Scott Wood from NC State. Redick entered his final postseason with a chance to go down as the NCAA's all-time leading free-throw shooter. The record, 91.3%, was held at the time by Gary Buchanan of Villanova. In an otherwise triumphant visit to Greensboro Coliseum for the 2006 ACC Tournament and early NCAA Tournament games, Redick struggled at the line, lowering his career free-throw percentage by about 0.5% and finishing his career with 91.16%.
On February 14, 2006, in the first half of a game against Wake Forest, Redick broke Virginia alumnus Curtis Staples's NCAA record of 413 career three-pointers made. Keydren Clark of Saint Peter's College subsequently surpassed Redick's mark in the MAAC Tournament. However, Redick returned the favor by hitting 15 three-pointers in the ACC Tournament and 12 in the NCAA Tournament to finish ahead of Clark. Redick finished his career with an NCAA-record 457 three-point field goals shooting 40.4% from three-point range. His career three-pointers record was broken on February 2, 2014, by Oakland University's Travis Bader.
In the game after breaking Staples' record, Redick scored 30 points on February 19, 2006, against Miami to become the all-time leading scorer at Duke, with 2,557 points scored in his career. On February 25, in a game versus Temple, Redick passed Dickie Hemric's 51-year-old ACC scoring record of 2,587 points with a pair of free throws in the waning minutes of the game. His record was topped in one of the opening round games of the 2009 NCAA Tournament by North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough. Redick finished his career with 2,769 points.
On March 10, 2006, in an ACC Tournament quarterfinal against Miami, Redick scored 25 points, setting a Duke record for points in a season with 858. Redick ended the season with 964 points. Redick came up just short of the ACC record for points scored in a season, which was set by Dennis Scott with 970 points in 1990. Redick also finished his career as the leading scorer in ACC tournament history. His total of 225 points eclipsed Wake Forest's Len Chappell, who scored 220 points in the tournament from 1960 to 1962.
As the marquee player of the Blue Devils, Redick was the target of abuse by fans. Clay Travis, of CBS Sports, called him the "most hated current athlete in America." After students from rivals Maryland and North Carolina discovered his cell phone number, Redick estimated that he received 50 to 75 hate calls per day from opposing fans. He was often the target of obscenity-laced tirades from fans.
He had 36 double-figure scoring games in a single season, tied as of March 28, 2010, for 5th-most in Duke history with Jon Scheyer, Shane Battier, and Jason Williams.
On February 4, 2007, Redick's no. 4 jersey was retired at Cameron Indoor Stadium at a special halftime ceremony. Redick became the 13th Duke player to have his jersey retired.

NBA career

Orlando Magic (2006–2013)

Redick was selected with the 11th pick in the 2006 NBA draft by the Orlando Magic. Pre-draft scouting reports praised Redick's perimeter shooting and basketball intelligence, but questioned his defensive ability and speculated that he might not be tall or athletic enough to create his own shots in the NBA. This scouting report was highlighted when Duke played LSU in the 2006 NCAA tournament. LSU's Garrett Temple, a 6'5" guard known for his athleticism and a large wingspan, chased Redick throughout the game. Taken out of his normal rhythm, Redick—the number two scorer in the nation at the time—had one of the worst shooting performances of his college career, shooting 3-for-18 from the field and scoring 11 points in a Duke loss.
In a 2005 interview with the Charlotte Observer, Redick said, "I think I'll be a role player like 80 percent of the players in the league are. I don't expect to be a star, I'll just shoot, be a team player." He moved up into the backup shooting guard position behind well-known veteran and Duke alum Grant Hill.
Redick competed against Trevor Ariza and Keith Bogans for the starting shooting guard spot in 2007–08. He was pulled from playing more than once for his lack of defense during the preseason. He came into the season as a third-string player and saw limited action due to back spasms, but moved into limited rotation after Ariza was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers early in the season. In January 2008, Redick posted on his personal blog that "it's been proven that even if I play well in the limited minutes I get that not much is going to change." On January 31, 2008, the Orlando Sentinel reported that Redick had asked his agent, Arn Tellem, to inquire about a possible trade. "We want to see what's out there," Redick said. "I want to stay here, but it's been frustrating." Magic coach Stan Van Gundy responded: "Right now it would be very hard to fit him in. I know it's also hard to keep sitting him on the bench... Should we be playing him? Right now we're going good so we probably won't disrupt things." The Orlando Magic confirmed Van Gundy's comments by stating that Redick would not receive more minutes or a trade before the February 21, 2008 trade deadline.
In the 2008–09 season, Redick averaged 17.4 minutes per game instead of the previous season's 8.1; he played in 64 games instead of the previous season's 34. He averaged six points per game. The Magic made it to the NBA Finals, but lost to the Lakers in five games. Redick started all seven games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in place of regular starter Courtney Lee.
March 28, 2010 was a night of career-highs for Redick, in rebounds, assists and minutes played. Vince Carter was injured just 95 seconds into the game; backup swingman Mickael Pietrus was also injured, leaving Redick to play the entire game.
On July 9, 2010, the Chicago Bulls signed Redick to a three-year, $19 million offer sheet. The Magic matched this offer on July 16, 2010, retaining the rights to Redick. On April 25, 2012, Redick achieved a career high with the Magic, scoring 31 points against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Milwaukee Bucks (2013)

On February 21, 2013, Redick was traded from the Magic to the Milwaukee Bucks along with guard Ish Smith and forward Gustavo Ayon for guard Beno Udrih, guard Doron Lamb, and forward Tobias Harris. Redick had difficulties in Milwaukee and his performance suffered.

Los Angeles Clippers (2013–2017)

On July 10, 2013, Redick was acquired by the Los Angeles Clippers via a three-team sign-and-trade deal that also involved the Bucks and the Phoenix Suns. Redick reportedly signed a four-year, $27 million contract. Redick started 218 of the first 219 games he played for the Clippers, becoming a "full-fledged starter" in the NBA. On January 15, 2014, Redick scored a then career-high 33 points in a 129–127 win over the Dallas Mavericks.
On January 18, 2016, Redick scored a career-high 40 points in a 140–132 overtime win over the Houston Rockets. He connected on his first five attempts behind the arc and finished 9-of-12 on three-pointers, tying Caron Butler's franchise record for three-pointers made in a game. He later competed in the Three-Point Contest during the 2016 NBA All-Star weekend.
On November 5, 2016, Redick increased his streak of consecutive games with a made three-pointer to 62, in a 116–92 win over the San Antonio Spurs. He also completed a four-point play against the Spurs, the 26th of his career. On April 12, 2017, Redick made three 3-pointers against Sacramento in the regular-season finale to finish with 201, breaking his career high and single-season franchise record of 200. The Clippers went on to lose in the first round of the NBA playoffs in seven games to the Utah Jazz.

Philadelphia 76ers (2017–2019)

On July 8, 2017, Redick signed a one-year, $23 million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. On November 3, 2017, Redick scored 31 points on 11-of-19 shooting with 8-of-12 from 3-point range in a 121–110 win over the Indiana Pacers. On November 25, 2017, he hit eight 3-pointers and scored 29 points in a 130–111 win over the Orlando Magic. Redick missed seven games in January 2018 with a leg injury.
On July 6, 2018, Redick re-signed with the 76ers. Redick was moved to the bench for the start of the 2018–19 season and on October 20, he had his best game since moving to the bench, scoring 31 points on 10-of-20 shooting, including eight 3-pointers, in a 116–115 win over the Magic. On December 19, in a 131–109 win over the New York Knicks, Redick scored his 10,000th career point. On February 8, he scored a season-high 34 points in a 117–110 win over the Denver Nuggets. On March 19, he was two assists shy of his first NBA triple-double in 761 career games, finishing with 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in a 118–114 win over the Charlotte Hornets. In April 2019, Redick set the franchise record for most 3-pointers in a season, surpassing Kyle Korver's mark of 226 set in 2004–05.

New Orleans Pelicans (2019–present)

On July 15, 2019, Redick signed with the New Orleans Pelicans. On December 11, 2019, Redick scored a season-high 31 points in a 112-127 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

National team career

Redick was a member of the 2003 USA Men's Junior World Championship Team. In 2005, he competed with the USA Basketball Under-21 Team, in Frisco, Texas, which won gold medals at the World Championships and the Global Games. In 2006, Redick was named to the USA national team 2006–2008 National Team Program. He competed for a spot with the 2008 Olympic Team, but was not placed on the final roster. A recurring back injury kept him from competing in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship.

Awards and honors

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

College

Personal life

Redick was born in Cookeville, Tennessee, the son of Jeanie and Ken Redick. His father played basketball for two seasons at Ohio Wesleyan University, and his older twin sisters, Catie and Alyssa, both played for Campbell University. His younger brother, David, was a tight end for the Marshall University football team until he decided not to play due to injury. He then moved to Orlando with JJ before going back home and attending Virginia Tech. His youngest sister, Abigail, played basketball for Virginia Tech and Drexel University. Redick was nicknamed "JJ" as a toddler because his twin sisters repeated his original nickname of "J". His father's background as a stoneware potter led to his middle name, "Clay." Redick graduated from Duke University with a major in history and a minor in cultural anthropology.
Redick is a Christian. Redick has four tattoos of Bible verses: Isaiah 40:31, Joshua 1:9, Psalm 40:1–3, and Philippians 4:13.
On June 13, 2006, Redick was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol in Durham County, North Carolina. His blood-alcohol level was 0.11, while the legal limit in North Carolina is 0.08. Redick was released on a $1,000 bond shortly after being arrested. Redick pleaded guilty.
On June 26, 2010, Redick married longtime girlfriend Chelsea Kilgore. They have two children together, Knox and Kai.
In November 2017, Redick launched his own podcast on The Ringer.