Getty JJ Redick of the Philadelphia 76ers
On February 25, 2019, the Philadelphia 76ers‘ new starting lineup posed for a cover story for Sports Illustrated with the caption, “Process This.” This was shortly after the team had acquired Tobias Harris from the Los Angeles Clippers, which happened not too long after the Sixers acquired Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
4 years ago today, the cover of Sports Illustrated. #BrotherlyLove
In light of the cover turning four years old, former Sixer JJ Redick reacted to it by posting a simple one-tear emoji.
Redick played two years for the Sixers, from 2017 to 2019, where he put up the two highest scoring averages of his entire career – 17.1 points a game during the 2017-18 season and 18.1 points during the 2018-19 season – despite Redick being 33 and 34 in those years respectively.
While that Sixers team may have gotten eliminated in the second round, they pushed the eventual champion, the Toronto Raptors, to seven games, which is something neither the Milwaukee Bucks nor the Golden State Warriors did when they faced the Raptors in the following rounds.
It also took Kawhi Leonard hitting a buzzer-beater at the last second to knock them out. Evidently, Redick misses those days with the Sixers.
Georges Niang Says Ben Simmons ‘Handicapped’ Sixers
In an interview with 97.5 The Fanatic, Sixers sharpshooter Georges Niang reflected on the Ben Simmons saga before he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. In short, he did not mince words on the negative impact it had on the team.
“Ben Simmons kind of handicapped us at the beginning of last year,” Niang said. “I mean, I wasn’t gonna say it, but now, you know what I mean?”
Niang then detailed it from an executive’s standpoint, most notably how they replace Simmons’ production.
“When you’re building rosters, talking from a general manager standpoint – I don’t know how much [Simmons] makes, but it’s a max contract. So you immediately take that off the books, ‘I’m not playing,’ you have to figure it out where other role players have to step up and replace, you know, the passing, dribbling, rebounding, defense –,” Niang concluded.
Even though they were technically teammates when Niang joined the Sixers in 2021, the two never saw the floor together before Simmons was traded.
In fact, the two of them have gotten into it in multiple matchups between the Sixers and Nets.
Redick Admitted He Regretted Not Returning to Sixers
After the Sixers were eliminated in 2019, Redick would sign with the New Orleans Pelicans the following offseason, where he would spend the last two seasons with them and the Dallas Mavericks before retiring in 2021.
Redick went on to admit in a live Q&A session of “The Old Man & Three” podcast that he regretted not going back to the Sixers.
“You can’t change an outcome because an outcome is out of your control. So, you can change a decision,” he said. “I wish there was a way I could’ve gone back to Philly.”
JJ Redick says his biggest regret in his NBA career is not coming back to Philadelphia
It makes sense why Redick regretted not coming back since he was putting up the best scoring numbers as an NBA player during his two-year stint with the Sixers. His ability to space the floor made it easy for him, Simmons, and Joel Embiid. His hovering around the three-point line opened up lanes for Simmons and Embiid to drive, and because of how much attention they demanded, that left him open enough to square up.