The Sixers Should Target J.J. Redick In Free Agency
By Jacob Tucker
The Philadelphia 76ers look to be major players this upcoming off-season, and they should set their sights on unrestricted free agent J.J. Redick.
The Philadelphia 76ers have essentially sat out the free agency period during the past few seasons, but with a lot of cap space and some major depth chart holes, they may turn to free agency to fill some needs. Much of the focus surrounding the team has been on the impending NBA Draft on June 22, but it is important to prepare for free agency as well. Teams are able to sign free agents on July 1, a little over a week after the draft.
Philadelphia 76ers
Now that the era of tanking is over (hopefully) it is time for the Sixers to start fielding a competitive team. The first step to doing that is bringing in some backcourt reinforcement, and in that regard, J.J. Redick is a perfect fit.
It is no secret that the Sixers are in desperate need of shooting. Last season they shot 34% from 3pt range, good for 25th in the league. A player like Redick would certainly help improve that number. He is a career 41.5 percent shooter from distance, and is only one year removed from shooting an astronomically high 47.5 percent from 3-point range during his 2015-16 campaign. In this era of pace-and-space basketball, every team needs a dead-eye shooter. The Sixers should make Redick their guy.
Availability
Redick spent the past four seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers and is now an unrestricted free agent. The stranglehold that the salary cap has on the Clippers can work to the Sixers’ advantage. If they want to resign two of their stars, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, then it will likely come at the expense of letting go key role players. Both of the aforementioned players are likely to command maximum contracts, leaving little room for them to resign Redick. A player like Redick would command a deal somewhere around $15 million a year on the open market. If that is the cost for one of the most prolific shooters in the league, then the Sixers should absolutely pay it.
Related: Sixers' 2017 free agent big board
Play Style/Fit
In order for a guard to succeed on this Sixers team, they will have to be able to do much of their work away from the ball. For most guards, there would be an adjustment period, but not for Redick. During his time with the Clippers he played next to a ball-dominant point guard in Paul, so much of his offensive production came through moving without the ball, weaving in and out of screens to hit open shots
The Sixers’ offense looks to be ran through Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons for the foreseeable future, which lends itself to a lot of open corner threes. Redick’s combination of spatial awareness and the accuracy and consistency of his three-point shooting makes him a perfect fit for the Sixers.
Related Story: Sixers' financial times, the case for J.J. Redick
Value of Shooting
Recently, the league has increasingly valued the three-point shot. The average three-point attempts that teams have taken per game has went up every year since 2007-08, culminating in 27 attempts per game for this past season. In order to keep up with the growing popularity of the pace-and-space style of play, the Sixers must look to add shooting, and Redick definitely fits the bill.
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Some may have questions regarding Redick’s age, as he will be 33 before the start of next season, but spot-up shooting is a skill that transitions well with age. A 36-year-old Kyle Korver yielded the Atlanta Hawks a first round draft pick before the trade deadline last season, so shooters will always have value, whether that be on the court or via trades. If Redick’s skill set ages anything like Korver’s, he would certainly be worth signing during this coming free agency period.
All stats courtesy of basketball-reference.com.