When Will We See J.J. Play?

J.J. Redick is stuck somewhere between a rock and a hard place.  His agent, Arn Tellem, has been busy dealing with his huge stable of draft-eligible clients over the past month and will likely not have his load lessened any time in the near future.  Meanwhile, Redick wants out of Orlando, but the Magic have been unwilling to budge.  On Monday, the Magic said that they would not trade Redick before the draft, during the draft, nor after the draft.  The team has kept its promise on two fronts; let’s see if they hold onto the one-time Duke Blue Devil in the future.

General Manager, Otis Smith, is quoted as saying, We’re not looking to move J.J. If it doesn’t make sense, we’re not going to move him just to move him.  That’s fine, because it now seems like the Magic actually do have a reason to try to implement a trade surrounding J.J.  The team selected with the 22nd overall pick, Courtney Lee, a shooting guard from Western Kentucky.  Not only does Courtney play the same position as Redick, but he is an absolute stud.  Playing at a lesser known school, he did not get on the national highlight reel as much as Chris Douglas-Roberts.  There is a damn good reason that he was taken before CDR, though.  The kid can flat out play, and acquiring his talents may lead the Magic to dish J.J. Redick.

I personally think that J.J. Redick has the potential to make it in the NBA.  Sure, he has difficulty creating his own shots, but there is always a spot on an NBA team’s roster for a kid who can flat-out shoot.  I liken J.J. to Jason Kapono, who consistently drains the three.  If a team were to utilize J.J. Redick’s talents and not ask him to perform in ways that he is unable to, I believe that he would be an asset on the court.

It will be interesting to see what the Magic does now that Courney Lee is added to the mix.  I am sure that Redick will keep us up-to-date on his spiffy blog.