JJ Redick was in the middle of the mayhem when Kawhi Leonard knocked down the series-clinching buzzer-beater that propelled the Toronto Raptors over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Redick appeared on Zach Lowe's podcast and vividly described what it was like to be in that moment and the aftermath that ensued, via Crossing Broad:
“So I was on the bench, and I sort of had that perfect angle, because I sort of, as soon as the ball had come in bounds, I sort of walked onto the baseline, not on the court, but onto the baseline. I had a straight-on view of the action. My memory may be a little jogged but I think my arms were crossed, I was watching the ball bounce on the rim, it went in, and I’m not sure I had any initial reaction. It was just shock. Part of you wants to walk off the floor and punch a wall. The other part of you is like, if I’m on the Raptors, I’d wanna dap up the people I just played a seven game series against. So I stayed on the court, I talked to Kyle and Marc and Kawhi and Danny and all of those guys, told them good luck, hope they win a championship, and then walked off.
“You get back to the locker room and you see the emotion. I obviously was feeling emotional. Joel started crying. Those are sort of the moments that you don’t forget. As much as you don’t forget the shot, the aftermath of moments like that, you just don’t forget, because there’s just this raw emotion.”
It's always interesting to hear something like this from the perspective of someone who was on the wrong end of that historic shot. Obviously, that was a heartbreaking scene for Redick and the Sixers.
Article Continues BelowOf course, as history has written, the Raptors went on to win their first-ever NBA championship led by Leonard. The Sixers, on the other hand, went home and saw a lot of changes this summer.
It really seems like that moment happened a long time ago. So much has changed in The Association during this offseason. Leonard has since left Toronto and signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. Redick, on the other hand, is no longer in Philadelphia and has since made his way to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Nevertheless, it's still great to recall such moments, even if they were moments of heartbreak.