I have now heard multiple references to this season being a “career year” for J.J. Redick. It’s true that he’s averaging more points per game (18) than he ever has before (his previous best was 17 PPG last season, and that was also a “career year”). However, can it really be a career year for Redick when he’s doing comparatively poorly at the skill, shooting threes, that has singularly defined his career?
Don’t get me wrong, 37% on threes is still great, especially at the very high volume that Redick shoots them. But for a guy who has been well over the 40% level on three-balls in the past half-decade, 37% seems like a regression. Not only does it seem like a regression, it IS a regression. Full stop. The loss of accuracy from three is tempered by an increase in accuracy on two-point shots, but Redick has not built a career on two-point shots. His career earnings are entirely predicated on his ability to make the three-zone into the splash-zone.
PPG is one of my favorite stats ever because it portrays in an easy-to-understand way the amount of points a player scores per game. There’s no fancy math or percentages. It’s not a hipster stat. It’s just a plain statement of fact. But it doesn’t tell Redick’s whole story. Then again, there isn’t a stat in the world that quantifies Redick’s forbidden desire to wee-wee on girls.