Robert Covington must step up for Philadelphia 76ers
By Bret Stuter
After J.J. Redick‘s injury, the Philadelphia 76ers are scrambling to find perimeter shooting. But the key lies squarely on the shoulders of wing Robert Covington.
The Philadelphia 76ers have once more learned that perimeter marksman J.J. Redick will be sidelined with injury. And so, a team which struggles with three-point accuracy has lost one of the lineup’s most accurate three point shooters. And that’s a problem. So far this season, Redick is shooting 40.5 percent from three-point range, best on the team. And his 17.9 points per game is second best on the team. So somewhere, the Philadelphia 76ers must regroup and compensate for his absence, even if just for a short period.
Sixers guard JJ Redick’s left leg injury isn’t serious and he will likely miss only a short window of time, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 17, 2018
Options
Some believe that the team simply has no alternative to send to the perimeter while Redick is on the bench. Still other believe that this creates an opportunity for the team promote both two-way contract players, James Young and Demetrius Jackson, to the NBA to see if either can make up some of Redick’s production. Still, they will be fighting unfamiliarity as they strive to excel at the arc.
The best alternative to fill the temporary absence of J.J. Redick from the lineup is to promote an existing player to a more featured role. Right now, the team is slotting Jerryd Bayless into the lineup to pick up on Redick’s starts. But the true player to step up already has a starting role for the team.