Monday, June 15, 2009

The 'J' Factor

Coach Stan 'the man' Van Gundy did an excellent job leading his underrated Orlando Magic past the defending champion Boston Celtics, past King James and Cavs, and into the NBA finals. What wasn't excellent, was Stan's approach when he finally got to the big dance. An approach that lacked the 'J' factor, which would be Van Gundy's inability to allow guard, J.J. Redick to be the X-factor against the Lakers.


The top three players leading Orlando's magical playoff run were Dwight Howard, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis. The common denominator that the three players shared is that none of them played basketball in college, none of them had experienced the rush of March Madness, and up until the this year's NBA Finals, none of them had ever played for a championship. In fact, the only player on the Magic roster with championship experience was Duke University graduate, J.J. Redick.


With Howard and Lewis entering the NBA draft from high school, and Turkoglu coming over from Turkey, the trio provided plenty of talent, but not much when it came to experience. What is interesting is that while the big three deserved to start every game and play for most of them, also starting every game for the Magic and getting some serious minutes were Rafer Alston (Fresno State) and Courtney Lee (Western Kentucky).


Now, Redick had gotten a lot of playing time earlier in the playoffs, starting every game against the defending champion Boston Celtics, where he only averaged 6.3 ppg, but shot 36% from the 3-point arc and 90% from the free throw line. Redick saw minimal time against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Conference Finals, only playing in one game for 10 minutes. Then in the finals, Redick played in 4 of 5 games, starting none, and averaging 16 minutes - but shot 45% from the arc.


Van Gundy seemed to give his players minutes based on hunches throughout the Lakers series, as he even minimalized Alston's playing time in Game 4 after he led the team to victory in Game 3. The point is that Van Gundy should have had more faith in Redick. If anyone can be trusted to lead a team down the stretch, to be a go-to shooter, to make "the shot," it's J.J.


In his four years at Duke, Redick played in four conference championships, winning three - he played in four NCAA tournaments, with three Elite Eight appearances and one National Championship runner-up performance. I'd go through and list all of his stats, but you can feel free to look them up - it's easy to know that they were exceptional though, because the one stat that I will give you is that Redick is one of only 13 Duke players that has his retired number hanging from the rafters at Cameron Indoor Stadium.


Not only was J.J. a sharp-shooter, he was a competitor. Redick managed to be such an impact player, that only the Duke faithful supported him. Every other fan around the NCAA, particularly those in the ACC, hated him with a passion. I know because I was one of them. As a die-hard JayHawk fan, I didn't have to see J.J. too much, but I would always hope for Duke to lose, because I hated J.J. Now that's power you can't buy. Furthermore, Redick had the fans at College Park, MD cheering "F* you JJ" in the middle of a nationally televised ACC showdown between Duke and Maryland. As much as fans love to hate players, you've got to imagine that being hated only fuels the motivation of a high-calibur player, like Redick. It makes it that much more important to drain the game-winning 3-ball, sink the game-tying free throw, or make the game-saving defensive stop - because now it's not just about winning, it's about making it sting for the other fans.


So let's fast-forward back to the present day situation, leaving the thriving Duke franchise and J.J.'s dominant career in the past. Who is J.J. Redick? Does he still play basketball? What team is he on? J.J. Redick has been forgotten - he's not hated anymore simply because he's not important enough to be hated.


That brings me back to my main point. Stan Van Gundy had a chance. A huge chance to revive J.J. Redick, and potentially secure a Championship Title for the Magic in the process. In the same way that a simple stolen base by low man on the totem pole, Dave Roberts, became the defining moment that turned the Red Sox around from a 3-0 deficit to the Yankees in 2004. Low man on the bench, Redick, could've been the X-factor in turning around a 3-1 deficit against the Lakers. Sure, he should've been starting since Game 1, but I'll even let Stan slide on that. Just go back to Game 5 - why would you put out the same starting lineup that has lost 3 of the last 4 games? Mix it up a little bit. Give J.J. a spot-start. Let the fans of Orlando learn to love him, and give the fans of Los Angeles a legitimate villain to hate. It's a role we know he can play, he played it for four years under one of the best coaches in the history of college basketball. Stop holding him back. How is a one-time college superstar supposed to have confidence in himself when he's getting garbage minutes off the bench? Put him in when his shots can still make a difference, and let him put the team on his back, drawing all defensive attention on himself - opening up the pick-and-roll for Hedo, and the inside lanes for Dwight "Superman" Howard.


But Stan didn't. He put the same lineup back out there. The same lineup that turned losing 3 out of 4 into losing 4 out of 5. Sure he put J.J. in the game...at the end of the 3rd quarter when people were already on there way back to the parking lot outside of Amway Arena. So now all we can do is hope that Stan learns his lesson. It will be a tough one, because it comes at the price of a championship. But if he can have faith, if he can trust J.J. to become hated once again, Redick's confidence will soar, and so will the Magic in the 2010 season. In an offseason where they've already added Vince Carter, they can add another big threat to their lineup by simply taking him off the bench.


This is your chance Stan the man. Give J.J. the rock, let him shine, let him be hated, and let him become an Orlando Magic legend. All the kid needs is a chance, and Stan, you're the one who can give it to him. So don't just do it for me, do it for you, do it for the people of Orlando, and do it for J.J. - let him out of his cage, stop holding him back, and go get that trophy.