about

Welcome from shell:

01/29/2008 - This site was originally created by Lara (read her statement below) and acquired by shell in January 2008. My goal for this site is to continue the great work pioneered by Lara in providing a fun place online for J.J. Redick fans to either learn more about him or interact in the forum. This is an unofficial fan site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by J.J. Redick, Duke University, the NBA or the Orlando Magic. For official J.J. Redick information, I encourage you to visit redicklive.com, J.J.'s official website.

Like Lara, I'm obviously a big fan of J.J. Redick and the Duke University basketball program. I discovered Lara's site and joined the forum in 2006 while J.J.'s career at Duke was winding down and he was breaking seemingly every record in the book. My mother is a big college basketball fan (of that other North Carolina school actually -- yikes) and she was the one that encouraged me to start watching, "There's this kid from Duke and he's amazing... I don't even like Duke, but I love watching him." Needless to say, I took her advice and started watching and the more I watched the more I wanted to know about J.J.  This site was where I found the information I was curious about. I'm hoping I can continue to provide people who are interested in J.J., a place to find the information they're looking for.

J.J.'s professional career with the Orlando Magic has been frustrating thus far, but there's no question in my mind that it's just a matter of time for him. People like J.J. aren't successful by accident. I have no doubt he'll make a name for himself in the NBA once he's given a real opportunity.

Lara's original mission statement:

Welcome... This is, obviously, a site devoted to J.J. Redick, one of the leading players for the Duke Blue Devils basketball team. I just wanted to take a second and explain the reasons for its existence.

I've been a Duke fan since 1989, the year some people consider the beginning of the Duke Dynasty era. I grew up near Philadelphia and I've never lived anywhere near North Carolina... I just stumbled across Christian Laettner and Co. on television one day and never looked back. Like most Duke fans, I have to listen to a lot of complaining from the fans of other teams. And I understand the reasons for that: I myself loathe the Yankees and the Cowboys for their (former) dominance. I get why people are sick of Duke winning all the time.

Nonetheless, win they do. And that's largely attributable to Coach Mike Krzyzewski and his classy program. I may have become a Duke fan by accident, but it's because of Coach K that I expect to be one for the rest of my life.

Two years ago, I saw a freshman by the name of J.J. Redick show up on my TV screen, launching ridiculous shots from some other zip code - and making them. Now, I don't think there is such a thing as a Duke recruit who doesn't come with the label “highly-touted”. J.J. was no exception. But he stood out of even that crowd to me right away as a kid with huge potential, because of his heart and his intensity as much as his shot.

Over the past three seasons, he's proven my initial hunch to be 100% correct. He's had his ups and downs, like any young player, but he has continuously strived to be a better player and a better leader. The results were apparent this past season when he led an overachieving squad to the ACC Tournament title and picked up a ton of individual honors along the way, including the Rupp Trophy as National Player of the Year.

Unfortunately, with great success comes great envy. Because of the combination of Duke's success and his own, J.J. attracts far more than his share of hate. The irrationality of this never ceases to amaze me. It blows my mind that people would dedicate so much of their time to hating on someone they've never met. As I became more aware of the venom directed at J.J., I wanted to do something to counteract it.

Arguing with the ignorance of people who would sink so low as to verbally attack J.J.'s younger siblings is pointless. So I decided the best way to fight the hate is by being positive and showing support for this terrific young man. I know he has many other fans out there; we just need a place to call our own. To that end, I've created this site as a tribute to J.J., his team and the power of positive energy.

Thanks for stopping by.
...Lara