ST. FRANCIS, WIS.: J.J. Redick repeated this regimen countless times over the last few years.
As teammates trudged off the court one-by-one following practice Saturday, Redick stayed on the court, trying to perfect his shooting stroke.
But his circumstances have changed. He wasn’t training inside Amway Center’s practice gym in Orlando, which is a short drive from Lake Eola and its swans and its palm trees. Instead, he was working out inside the gym at the Archbishop Cousins Center, which is a short drive from Lake Michigan and its seagulls and its snow-lined shore.
“It’s been an adjustment,” said Redick, who was traded by the Orlando Magic to the Milwaukee Bucks on Feb. 21, just minutes before this season’s NBA trade deadline.
“You don’t even really think about all the things you have to adjust to on the court, off the court. And then you have to go perform every night. It’s been a challenge. But overall, it’s been great. It’s been positive. No complaints.”
The last few weeks have felt like a whirlwind to him.
And today might resemble something even more forceful. This afternoon, for the first time, he’ll play against the Magic.
“It’ll be weird,” Magic point guard Jameer Nelson said.
Redick expects to say hello to everyone before or after the game, but he won’t make a big deal about it.
“I always thought it was weird — and this is just me — whenever there was a trade midseason or even sometimes guys that spent a number of years in Orlando, they’d come back and peek their head in the locker room before the game,” Redick said, smiling. “I always was annoyed by that. I don’t want to be that guy. The locker room is like a sacred place, and we’re not on the same team anymore.”
The last few weeks have been so busy, with Bucks games and acclimating to his new home, that he hasn’t had much of a chance to reflect on the trade.
The Magic made the deal largely because Redick will be a free agent this summer and team officials didn’t want to make a significant long-term salary commitment at this stage of the rebuilding process, especially with Arron Afflalo already ensconced at shooting guard.
And even if the Magic had wanted to re-sign Redick, it was possible that Redick would’ve signed elsewhere and left the Magic without any assets in return.
Ultimately, the Magic received three players, with 20-year-old forward Tobias Harris as the centerpiece.
“I don’t have bitterness at all, and I didn’t even initially have any bitterness,” Redick said. “ … And, also, I get it. I totally get it. I get why I was traded. So I don’t have any ill will toward anyone in the Magic.”
