<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Guard J.J. Redick's rookie season hasn't gone anywhere near the way he expected. Redick, picked 11th by the Orlando Magic in the draft last June, figured he would work his way into the rotation and contribute immediately. Instead, he has scored 35 points the entire season ? a good night's work for him at Duke, where he was a two-time All-American and the consensus 2006 player of the year ? while playing in eight of the Magic's first 38 games. "It's frustrating," Redick says. "I love playing. I want to play basketball every day for the rest of my life." Initially, injuries kept Redick on the sideline. He missed rookie camp because of a herniated disc, which also kept him from playing with the Magic's summer-league team. A foot injury during training camp limited him to three exhibition games. The injuries caused Redick to fall behind in his development, but the Magic still have high hopes for him. "He's playing catch-up," coach Brian Hill says. "He missed so much basketball this summer. He's coming along. He's got a really good offensive feel for the game, and he works incredibly hard." Redick says he tries to keep his lack of playing time in perspective and use it as a motivational tool. "I thought I'd be a contributor my rookie year," he says. "So far, that hasn't happened. That's disappointing. But there are certain things I can control. I can't control if I'm on the active roster or inactive roster or whether I get a shot to play. I can control my attitude and how hard I work. That's what I try to do. "I'm not going to lie. Some days I'm mad at the world. That's because I take this seriously. I'm looking forward to the coming months. I look at every day as an opportunity to get better." Redick hasn't been able to crack the Magic's guard rotation that includes Jameer Nelson, Grant Hill, Keyon Dooling, Carlos Arroyo and Keith Bogans. But the Magic like what they have seen when he's gotten playing time. Redick last played extended minutes last month when Nelson and Bogans were injured. Redick was 4-for-15 from the field, including 2-for-6 on three-pointers ? his specialty ? in three games against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Bobcats and Toronto Raptors while averaging 16 minutes. He also had a career-high nine points in 12 minutes vs. the Miami Heat on Dec. 30, and he had eight points on 3-for-5 shooting from the field vs. the Bobcats on Jan. 5. Redick's play in those games validated the Magic's thinking that his perimeter shooting would complement Dwight Howard's post game. Magic general manager Otis Smith says Redick also answered questions critics had about his overall game. "When you have a guy who can shoot the ball the way he can, he's going to stretch the floor," Smith says. "When you've got a big guy inside that you can feed, you need the floor to be a little bit longer. With him on the floor, you have to know he's out there. He shot the basketball; he showed he can defend in this league and that he has some toughness. Those are those things that were in question for some, but not for us." </div> Link
