Philadelphia 76ers: JJ Redick's Value Went Beyond Shooting

New Orleans Pelicans guard JJ Redick is never one to shy away from his opinion. Recently, the veteran sharpshooter had an interesting take regarding his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers. “They f***** up not bringing me back, man,” the 36-year-old guard recently stated on the 'All the Smoke' podcast.

Days before he made his decision to land with the Pelicans during the 2019 offseason, Redick was reportedly making it known he would like to finish his career with the Sixers after helping them get to the playoffs during the previous two seasons.

But Elton Brand and the Sixers' collaborative front office decided to go bigger with more defense in mind. Redick, who is more known for his offense, didn't exactly fit the bill in this case. After wrapping up the 2020 NBA Playoffs by getting swept in the first round, it's clear the 76ers might've made a mistake allowing Redick to walk.

While Redick acknowledges the Sixers could've used his consistent shooting abilities, he believes his value went beyond on-court production -- and he's not wrong. “I think they probably realized they needed a little more shooting,” Redick claimed.

“The thing with me in Philly, though, it wasn’t just about the shooting. You need people in the locker room. You just need those guys. I’m friends; I literally was texting with Ben [Simmons] and [Joel Embiid] the other day. We don’t consider the relationship part of it as much as we should.”

When the Sixers inked Redick to a one-year deal ahead of the 2017-2018 season, the former Los Angeles Clippers guard was brought on to lead a group of young and inexperienced players to get past the days of tanking for draft picks.

Although Redick wasn't in Philly for a long time, his two-year run with the Sixers helped him establish an important leadership role and become one of the more trusted captains on the team. While some other Sixers attempted to step up in Redick's absence this past season, it's clear there was a lack of leadership in Philly.

Following a wildly disappointing season, it's apparent Redick is right. The Sixers screwed up by not bringing him back. There's hope that some of the younger guys in Philly, such as Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Tobias Harris, hit their strides as vocal leaders in the locker room as Redick did.

Also, the organization is looking forward to filling the void of consistent shooters, while Redick is gone as well. Everything won't improve with the flip of a switch during the 2020-2021 run -- but the Sixers will have to find players who can fill the voids JJ Redick left when he joined the Pelicans last Summer.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_