JJ Redick announced his retirement from the NBA on Tuesday, bringing to an end his illustrious 15-season career in basketball's top professional league. Redick made the announcement on his "Old Man and the Three" podcast, saying that the last 30 years of basketball have been beyond his wildest dreams and that he could never have imagined playing basketball for this long.
Redick then made the big reveal, saying, "After years of youth leagues, AAU, high school basketball, four years at Duke and 15 years in the NBA, I'm retiring from the game that I love so much."
Redick's outside shooting the key to his long career in the NBA
The 37-year-old sharpshooter played with six NBA teams, spending time with the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Dallas Mavericks. He played in 940 regular-season games, averaging 12.8 points and making 1,950 career three-pointers. He is ranked 15th in the history of the NBA in terms of makes from the 3-point range.
Redick first rose to prominence at Duke, racking up 2,769 points in his college career to become the school's all-time leading scorer, a record that still stands today. Redick also remains the Blue Devils' all-time leader in free throw accuracy (91.2%) and made 3-pointers (457).
He averaged 26.8 points per game during his senior year at Duke, earning him AP Player of the Year honors in 2006. The Orlando Magic noticed Redick's performance, selecting him with the 11th overall pick in the NBA Draft that same year.
The two-time ACC Player of the Year began his NBA career as a reserve, but his minutes eventually picked up as the league's style of play gave more importance to the 3-point shot. Redick was already averaging in double-figures by the time he was playing in his fifth NBA season.
Redick's offensive brilliance stood out during his stints with the Clippers and the Sixers. He shot a league-best 47.5 percent from beyond the arc for the Clippers in the 2015-16 season, while he averaged a career-high 18.1 points with the Sixers in the 2018-19 campaign.
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Father time wins yet again as injuries hit Redick in final season
Age eventually caught up with Redick last season with injuries forcing him to play just 44 games with the Mavericks and the Pelicans. His offensive numbers dipped as a result, with Redick averaging just 7.4 points, the first time he wasn't a double-digit scorer in more than a decade. He also shot just 37 percent from 3-point range, the second-lowest mark of his NBA career.
Redick, who appeared in the playoffs in each of his first 13 seasons in the NBA, knew that his time was up, saying that the 2020-21 season was a seven-month exercise in coming face to face with his athletic mortality. Redick's career may now be over, but he will leave the NBA as one of the greatest shooters in its history.
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