In an attempt to bolster their perimeter shooting, the Dallas Mavericks acquired sharpshooting guard J.J. Redick from the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday morning.
The trade occurred on Thursday, but wasn’t made official until Friday.
Also in the trade, the Mavs received forward Nicolo Melli, while they shipped forwards James Johnson and Wes Iwundu and a second-round pick to the Pelicans in return.
Redick, 36, is in his 15th season and the Mavs will be the sixth franchise he’s played for. The 6-3, 200-pounder is widely considered one of the game’s best perimeter shooters, and he’ll undoubtedly become a welcomed target for point guard Luka Doncic to pass the ball to.
However, Redick hasn’t played since March 3 when he scored 22 points on 9-of-15 shots in 28 minutes during a 128-124 loss to the Chicago Bulls. On March 11 Redick underwent a non-surgical procedure to relieve inflammation and soreness in his right heel.
In 927 career games while playing for the Orlando Magic, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers and Pelicans, Redick averaged 12.9 points and shot 44.7 percent from the field and a sizzling 41.5 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. He also averaged over 10 points for 10 seasons, shot over 40 percent from 3-point range seven times, and converted over 90 percent of his free throws six times.
Redick, who will earn $13,013.7 million this year, averaged 8.7 points in just 18.6 minutes for the Pelicans this season, and also made 36.4 percent of his 3-point shots. The No. 11 overall pick by the Magic out of Duke in 2006, Redick’s best year occurred during the 2018-19 season when he averaged 18.1 points and shot 44 percent from the floor and 39.7 percent from behind the 3-point stripe while he was playing for the Sixers.
The 6-9, 236-pound Melli, meanwhile, is in his second season and averaged two points and 2.6 rebounds this year while shooting 25.4 percent from the field and 18.9 percent from 3-point range. The 30-year old’s biggest claim to fame is that he scored a game-high 28 points as his Fenerbahce Istanbul team lost to Doncic’s Real Madrid squad in the 2018 EuroLeague championship game, 85-80.
In trading Johnson and Iwundu, the Mavs parted ways with two players they acquired in the offseason. Johnson averaged 5.7 points and three rebounds in 17.4 minutes while playing 29 games this season, and Iwundu played 25 games and averaged 2.1 points and 1.9 rebounds in 12.5 minutes.
It is not known if Redick and Melli will be in uniform when the Mavs host the Indiana Pacers on Friday, or when they travel to New Orleans to battle the Pelicans on Saturday.
Twitter: @DwainPrice
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