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When former Los Angeles Clippers SG J.J. Redick signed a one-year, $23 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason, it seemed like a pretty solid move for the veteran. As you can imagine, it’s probably pretty tough to turn down $23 million for one season, plus Redick was joining a young up-and-coming team.
But apparently, Redick also had the option to join the Houston Rockets, and if he had gone there, he would have made even more total money than he is with the 76ers. As Michael K-B of 247Sports reported, Redick turned down more money because the role the Rockets were offering wasn’t what he wanted.
Here’s a look at Redick’s quote, courtesy of Kurt Helin of NBC Sports:
“It wasn’t about the money. Houston offered me more money than Philly. Total money. They offered me more money. I knew in Houston, I was going to come off of the bench. Me and Eric Gordon do a lot of the same things… It wasn’t necessarily going to be what I wanted at this point in my career for the court part of it.”
Obviously, this can mean many different things. The Rockets could have offered a two-year, $30 million deal or something around that. It’s completely unknown how much money they were willing to fork over, but this deal may also make sense for Redick in terms of his long-term future as well. The 33-year-old sharpshooter is cashing in during the 2017 season, and then next offseason will get to decide if he wants to stay in town or look elsewhere. Both options could feature long-term contract potential as well.
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Redick enters a great situation in Philadelphia, but also one that’s going to take some time to come together. The 76ers have plenty of talent in the likes of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Markelle Fultz and Dario Saric, to name a few, but it’ll also be their first year all playing together. There are quite a few unanswered questions, but the ideal situation for the team and Redick alike would probably be for him to have a solid role in 2017, and to stay in town with a new deal next offseason.
On the other side of things, Redick likely turned down the chance to be one of the top contenders for an NBA title in the entire league with the Rockets. The pairing of James Harden with Chris Paul, as well as the team’s continued push for Carmelo Anthony, would have given him an opportunity to play for a championship. That may still happen with the 76ers, but it’s hard to argue that it’s not more likely that it would have happened with Houston in the immediate future.
