JJ Redick Interview

By Brian Ekberg - Posted on Friday, August 11, 2006

J.J. Redick may look a bit silly in the black and teal Lycra suit he's wearing, what with its ill-fitting cap and a multitude of tiny light-capturing balls attached to it, but his shot looks as sweet as ever. The former Duke shooting guard, all-time leading scorer in the ACC, and 11th overall pick by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA Draft is draining shots from all over the court while in town for a motion-capture session with the folks at 2K Sports. Redick is featured on the cover of College Hoops 2K7 and, before the mo-cap session began, he had a chance to play both the game that will feature his likeness and 2K's upcoming professional basketball effort: NBA 2K7.

Regardless of what he's wearing, Redick's jumper really is something--the extended arms, the perfectly timed release, the intense focus on the rim--it's all there each and every time Redick lets loose with the ball, whether the ball finds the net or not. In fact, it's during those misses that you get a glimpse of the perfectionist inside Redick, which is what drove him to be one of the most dominant offensive players in college basketball history. This may be only a motion-capture session--which is a rung or two beneath a pickup game on the hoops hierarchy--but it's still basketball, so you know J.J.'s going to be working hard.

After the mo-cap session was over, we caught up with Redick to discuss his thoughts on hoops, video games, and his future in the NBA.

What was the motion-capture experience like?

It was really unlike anything I've ever experienced. I didn't know what to expect. Basically I put on a body suit, they put some Velcro balls on me, and I made a lot of movements and did my shots and moves. They captured everything and I saw some of it and it looks good.

What kind of moves were they looking for?

Signature moves. What I do. My jump shot--they wanted to capture my jump shot and have that in the game. My step-through move, step back, fade away, runner. All the shots I've become accustomed to shooting and making, they put in the game.

I noticed that toward the end, you had some suggestions of shots that should be included. What were those suggestions and why did you make them?

Well the reason I suggested them was, you know, I love video games, I play video games. I've played every type of basketball game from GameGear to Xbox 360. I had some suggestions, stuff that I think could make any game better. This game, College Hoops 2K7 and NBA 2K7 are going to be great games. Hopefully they put some of the stuff in there that I showed them.

I played the College Hoops 2K7 game for a little bit. It's kind of in its beginning processes--it's a little raw right now, but it's going to be a great game. The players' movements and the crowd atmosphere are top-notch. And then I played the NBA 2K7, which was very near finished and it's a great game. I really enjoyed playing it.

Do you have a preference when it comes to games?

Not really. If it's a good game, I play it. I've had the 2K6 College Hoops game and NBA 2K6 for a few months and both those games are very good. I don't play just sports games. I play other games too.

What other types of games do you play?

I play every type of sports game you can think of. You know, the NBA games, the college game, NHL 2K6. It's a great game. I don't just play 2K Sports games, I play other titles. And then I play Halo a ton; I'm a big Halo guy. Ghost Recon I play as well. I've tried out the Table Tennis game--that's pretty cool. Just all different types of things.

"I'm going to really miss going into an opposing arena and having screaming college students with their shirts painted, holding posters about me, or have T-shirts printed about me with vulgar things on them. I'm going to miss that, as crazy as that sounds. That stuff is just hilarious to me and it's part of the college game."

When you play a college basketball game, do you always play as Duke?

Personally I always play as Duke. If I'm playing against a friend, they obviously have to be somebody else. Generally they pick a rival, but that's fine.

What about the NBA? Are you going to be playing Orlando exclusively now?

Usually, in past games, I pick Dallas or Miami or Seattle or Phoenix. Those are usually the teams I pick because some of my favorite players are on those teams. But I think I'll try out Orlando--I had a little bit of success with them earlier this morning. Couldn't pull out the win in the end, but I'll improve.

Do you have a lot of time to play these days?

Yeah. I'm not in school anymore. And to be honest with you, besides going to class, I didn't really do a whole lot of schoolwork. I kind of just slid by, you know what I mean?

[laughs] That's refreshingly honest.

Yeah. I played a lot, even during the school year.

Your college career was highlighted by lots of records, lots of scoring at a school that is no stranger to great players. How do you look back on your time at Duke?

First of all, I'm very proud to say I played for Duke in the first place. I grew up a Duke fan, and it was always my dream. What I did at Duke was beyond my wildest expectations. So I look back on my time at Duke very fondly. I couldn't ask for more and I wouldn't change a thing about my college experience.

What about playing for Coach K [Mike Krzyzewski]?

I think Coach is the best, there's no other way to describe him. He is the best, he's just an awesome, awesome coach and an even better person and I feel very fortunate to have spent the last four years with him.

What will you miss about the college game?

I think the crowds. I'm going to really miss going into an opposing arena and having screaming college students with their shirts painted, holding posters about me, or have T-shirts printed about me with vulgar things on them. I'm going to miss that, as crazy as that sounds. That stuff is just hilarious to me and it's part of the college game. And I don't think I'm going to be able to experience that on the same level in the NBA.

Do you have one particular game or shot that stands out in your memory where you were really in your zone and you just felt like you were unstoppable?

I had a few games like that. One that immediately comes to mind is our game in December of my senior year against Texas. We were number one in the country, we had kind of struggled early on in the season, [we] hadn't been blowing teams out. Texas was number two. They hadn't really played anybody--they had beaten a lot of weaker teams and had blown them out. Everyone was expecting them to beat us by a lot. I ended up with 41 and we beat them by 31. That was one of the highlights of my senior year.

You're known for your shot. But what's the skill you wish more people were aware of in your game?

I don't think my skills get enough credit. I think I'm a very skilled player. If I wasn't skilled then I wouldn't be the level of player that I am, because I'm obviously not athletic, if you ask anybody. So I must be skilled. But I think the thing that I take the most pride in is my intangibles--the person I am, the competitiveness, the will to win--all those characteristics that I've had since I was 7 or 8 years old. That's what I take the most pride in.

What do you hope to focus on in the NBA?

I think getting stronger. I think I'll naturally do that over the course of my career as I get older and get used to the NBA game. I think I need to improve my ballhandling--I might be asked to play some point [guard] at some point. A team may double-team our point guard and make me bring it up at some point. So I'm going to have to improve those two things.

Is there someone in the NBA whose game you hope to emulate?

I've always tried to emulate guys like Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, Michael Redd, Rip Hamilton, because they're so good at moving without the ball and scoring without necessarily having the ball, because they come off screens so well and they set their man up. You know, I've watched a lot of film on all those guys.

What do you know about your teammates in Orlando so far? What are you expecting from the team this season?

I know that Travis Diener is an absolute crack-up. The guy is hilarious and one of the biggest smart-a**** I've ever been around [laughs]. He's a great guy, though. Jameer [Nelson] has been very friendly to me. Dwight Howard is a great guy--I actually met him when I was a sophomore or freshman in college, and he was still in high school. And now he's a vet and I'm a rookie in the NBA. It just shows you how crazy things are. I obviously know Grant Hill very well. I met Hedo Turkoglu and Pat Garrity. All those guys have been great. I think with the way they ended the season last year, going 16-6 in their last 22 games, I think we have a lot of momentum going into this season.

Do you have personal goals you set at the beginning of the season?

No, I stopped doing that a few years ago, because all it does is set you up for failure. I set goals that I can control. I haven't really thought about my goals, but my goals will be playing hard every day in practice, competing for a job. That's stuff I can control; I can't control whether the coach likes me and wants to put me in the game.

OK, final question. How does that mo-cap suit fit?

It's a little tight and it's extremely hot. But I made it through the workout without fainting, which I was happy about.