After a tough first season in the NBA that included a pre-draft DUI, bad coaching, injuries, bad coaching, lack of playing time, bad coaching, and bad coaching, it seems as if J.J. Redick seems to have found his groove and comfort zone in Orlando. Throughout the summer league and now into the pre-season, J.J. Redick is doing what he does best, scoring. Not only is he doing it from the outside, but he has also made a concentrated effort to drive to the hoop.
Despite his offensive progress, head coach Stan Van Gundy wants to see what kind of defense J.J. is capable of playing. Anyone who has watched J.J. play defense knows his defense is not bad. He is not a lazy defender, he plays typical Duke hustle defense, but in the NBA, speed and quickness are as important as good positioning and footwork. Will he be able to guard the likes of Kobe Bryant and Michael Redd? Well, this past summer, during Team USA workouts, that is exactly what he did. From that experience, he feels he has made huge defensive strides. To what extent remains to be seen, but it will be the difference between playing 20 minutes or 36 minutes per game.
Luckily, he is competing for playing time with Keith Bogans. Bogans is not known for his offense, so he will have to prove he is the superior defender. However, in this past Wednesday’s pre-season game, Bogans started but was benched for a lack of defensive hustle, that clearly is not a good sign for him. My prediction for this season is that J.J. and Bogans will split starts but J.J. will get a majority of the minutes. Not only that, but J.J. will average at least 16 points a game, with multiple 30-point nights. It should be fun to watch…good luck J.J.