JJ Redick was criticized by Dominique Wilkins for his portrayal of Larry Bird, claiming that he lacks knowledge of 1980s basketball.
Basketball is JJ Redick’s specialty. He has years of experience playing it at a top level, having spent 15 seasons in the NBA. It seems like he doesn’t know anything about basketball in the 1980s.
During a First Take broadcast last week, Redick and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo contrasted Larry Bird’s stats with those of Stephen Curry. Russo brought up the physicality of Bird’s time and noted that the game was played entirely differently when Bird was playing. Redick dismissed the physicality aspect, indicating that Curry experiences more knocks than Bird did.
One of the top five players in NBA history may be Larry Bird. He is undoubtedly among the top 10. Redick acknowledged to Russo that Bird was among the all-time great shooters, but he insisted that Bird will never rank among the top three-point shooters.
Redick used the long ball to make his money in basketball. Throughout his 15-year NBA career, he averaged two assists and two rebounds, not doing much else. Having some knowledge of three-point shooting, he chose to inform Russo of the reasons why Bird isn’t among the finest in that area.
“Many individuals have made more shots, made more baskets, and — surprise! — made more at a higher percentage than Larry Bird from three,” Redick informed Russo. “I’m not disputing that Larry Bird is among the all-time best shooters. He isn’t among the all-time best three-point shooters.
Bird’s game did not include three-point shooting, so he does not have those stats. Back then, it wasn’t a feature of the NBA game. With 82 made 3-pointers in the 1985–86 season, Bird led the league. At a 42.3% clip, he made 82 of 194 of his shots from behind the arc. Curry attempted 886 three-pointers in the 2015–16 campaign, making 402 of them. When post-up centers were around in the 1980s, most teams tried to get the ball inside. The game is now all three-point shooting.
Redick lost significant ground when he claimed that Curry receives more beatings than Bird did.
“They’re attached to him at all times when I watch Steph Curry get grabbed and held by Marcus Smart in a playoff game,” Redick remarked. And no one is within five feet of Larry Bird as he emerges from a pin-down. Are you implying that one is physically superior to the other?
With Redick, Dominique Wilkins corrects the record
It was difficult for Dominique Wilkins, who engaged in several heated arguments with Bird, to remain silent in response to Redick’s remarks. Wilkins employed terms such as “idiotic” and “stupid” to aptly characterize Redick’s perspective.
First of all, Wilkins stated on SiriusXM NBA Radio on Tuesday, “Redick has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.” I’ll say it up front: He has no idea what the hell he’s talking about. What kind of basketball were you watching, I wonder? It’s absurd to say anything that foolish.
the level of physicality present in the league. Look, when you can manipulate a guy by placing your hand on his hip and pulling him in a specific direction, and you can. There aren’t many guys who can withstand being elbowed in the chest by a guy to slow him down. I’m really disgusted with JJ Redick, who participated in this game, for saying something so foolish.