Tainted Love

My heart sank to the pit of my stomach as I watched J.J. Redick leave the court for the last time as a Duke Blue Devil. Not because he had turned in a lackluster performance his last game, or because he could not deliver for his team yet again in the sweet sixteen, but because this was the passing of a truly great player in college basketball history.

My stomach churned as columnist after columnist lined up to take pot shots at the senior guard. Apparently, “J.J. Rejection’s” career was permanently tainted because of his countless “under achievements” in the sweet sixteen and beyond. Evidently, J.J. will never be remembered as great because he did not perform in the tournament, and greatness is defined by the NCAA tournament, nothing else. It seems that Redick was finally “exposed” and will now amount to nothing more than a footnote in the annals of college basketball history. Just another Trajan Langdon. The penance for the sins of a pure shooter.

But perhaps we should take a minute, take a breath, and put down our pen before we start writing this chapter of basketball history, and keep a little perspective. Maybe we should all take a step back and remember that this sport was not berthed in 1980, and there is more to it than just the last 25 years. Maybe, just maybe, we should not succumb to the over-hyped whirlwind society that our media has allowed us to become. Maybe we shouldn’t let the LSU game or the NCAA tournament determine the fate of Jonathan Clay Redick.

When asked who the greatest college basketball player of all time would be, most college historians would most likely reply with one of three names:

1. Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabaar)
2. Bill Walton
3. Pete Maravich

While Alcindor and Walton played for UCLA’s powerhouse teams of the sixties and seventies, Maravich played under his father Press at LSU.

Known for his mop of brown hair and floppy gray socks, Maravich scored more points in college than any other player in history. In only three years playing for LSU, Maravich scored 3,667 points — 1,138 points in 1968, 1,148 points in 1969 and 1,381 points in 1970 while averaging 43.8, 44.2 and 44.5 points per game, respectively. In the process, "Pistol Pete" set 11 NCAA and 34 Southeastern Conference records, as well as every LSU record in points scored, scoring average, field goals attempted and made, and free throws attempted and made. In his collegiate career, the 6'5" guard averaged an incredible 44.2 ppg in 83 contests and led the NCAA in scoring three times. He also set an NCAA record by scoring more than 50 points 28 times. He was named a three-time All-American and still holds many of these records, more than 35 years later. Notably, his 3,667 points don't factor in the 741 he scored his freshman year, or the fact that they played without a three-point line in Maravich's era.

While Maravich was a consensus All-American three consecutive years, the player of the year (which he shared), and his career scoring average was (and still is) ten points higher than anyone ever, Maravich never played in the NCAA tournament. His Tigers were a mere 49-35 throughout his career. Pistol Pete’s squad never finished in the AP Top 20, and never won the SEC. Under Maravich, LSU once made the NIT, only to lose to Marquette in the semifinals (comparable, by games, to the sweet sixteen), and Army in the third place game.

Meanwhile, J.J. Redick played in the Final Four once and Sweet Sixteen three times. He advanced to the conference championship game all four years (winning three). He was named ACC tournament MVP, and ACC player of the year honors two consecutive years. Redick left Duke as the all-time leading scorer in ACC history, a conference littered with the players that could fill a who’s who book of college, and professional, basketball. He was a consensus All-American two consecutive years and will likely share player of the year honors with Adam Morrison. The 6'4" guard sits atop the NCAA as the leader of 3 point shots made, and maintains the all-time career mark in the NCAA for free throw percentage (91.2). These are the marks of one of the greatest players in Duke, ACC, and yes, NCAA history.

Do not be fooled, this is not a comparison of J.J. Redick to the Pistol. It’s not a manipulation of statistics to somehow validate Redick as the greatest player ever. It is a simple point that what Redick did for college basketball was undeniably great, and numbers do not lie. He left a lasting impression on his school, his conference, and the nation with his determination to improve, his fearlessness, and incredible electricity he brought to the court. He might not go on to a stellar NBA career (much like Pete's stint in the NBA was somewhat forgettable), but that is most definitely not the point.

J.J. Redick is a once in a generation player who provided college basketball with an exciting four years that is rarely ever seen. His uncanny streak shooting, infinite range, and remarkably consistent touch is (and will become) legendary.

He is a player who left the game Saturday night, and my heart sank. He will never grace the hardwood of a collegiate game again. His career was not tainted, he did not underachieve, and he certainly was not lackluster. J.J. was a great ambassador of college basketball.

And he deserves better from all of us.

Duke Falls Victim to History, LSU

Watching LSU triumph over the top-seeded Duke Blue Devils last night incorrigibly reminded me that “those who do not learn from the past are destined to relive it.”

In 2002, the Blue Devils encountered a hungry, athletic, and dangerous team led by a tall, lanky forward who would simply have the game of his life. All night Duke was smothered by an unabashed, suffocating defense. This team forced the kids from Durham into one of their worst performances of the season. And as timed ticked down, Duke was let down by their superstar, the consensus All-American, and player of the year. The setting was Lexington, Kentucky. The team: Indiana. The all-star: Jason Williams.

Not learning from their previous failures, the ill-fated Devils were forced to relive that tragic night, when some of the university’s greatest players were unceremoniously usurped from college basketball, unremorsefully cast aside. Last night, Duke was caught in the perfect storm. They faced a team that was hungrier, more athletic, and overall primed for exploiting the potential weaknesses in the Blue Devils’ game. This time it was Tyrus Thomas (not Jared Jeffries) that played the role of the unconscious athlete who punched in his career game. And J.J. Redick assumed the role of the college superstar rendered nearly ineffective from brazen defensive game-planning and execution.

Just as in 2002, the top-seeded Blue Devils were eliminated from the sweet sixteen falling embarrassingly short of the national championship game, its players looking like shells of their former selves. But make no mistake, this was not the undoing of J.J. Redick, it was the seemingly mechanical dissection of the entire Duke squad. Stifled by LSU’s apparent triangle and two defense, Redick continually created open shots for his fellow teammates who proverbially “dropped the ball” time after time. This was a team that shot an unheard of 29% average from the field and scored a season low 54 points.

All credit in the world goes to John Brady and his team, much like Mike Davis and his Hoosiers. Each prepared a brilliant game plan and executed flawlessly. Neither LSU nor Indiana played the role of the meek David, compared to Duke’s Goliath. Rather, like Buster Douglas, each team showed that on the right night, with the right desire, and a serious right punch, an ostensibly overmatched opponent can rise up and pickapart the champ.

History doesn’t always repeat itself. Sometimes it just screams, “Why don’t you listen to me?” Hopefully Duke will this time.