Magic Ex J.J. Redick In War of Words With NBA Legend: 'He Was Being Guarded By Plumbers and Firemen'

J.J. Redick takes shots at Boston Celtics legend Bob Cousy.

Jeremy Brener | May 20, 2022

Magic Ex J.J. Redick In War of Words With NBA Legend: 'He Was Being Guarded By Plumbers and Firemen' /

Since joining ESPN, J.J. Redick has become one of the rising stars in the sports media world.

He's qualified to talk about basketball, intelligent, and hardly minces his words when he makes an appearance. And once upon a time, he was a rising star for the Orlando Magic.

J.J. Redick

John Hammond

Jamahl Mosley

In a segment shown on ESPN's "First Take" last month, Redick, 37, was debating with New York sports media personality Chris "Mad Dog" Russo, 62, about the greatest point guard in NBA history.

Russo stated that Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul, Redick's former teammate with the Los Angeles Clippers, was not a transcendent player after losing Game 2 of his opening round series against the New Orleans Pelicans.

"He's not Bob Cousy," said Russo.

When Cousy entered the conversation, Redick began to discuss how the difficulty of the game has grown over time.

"Let's celebrate Bob Cousy in his era, but we can't compare pre-1980s NBA to now," Redick responded. "He was being guarded by plumbers and firemen."

Cousy, 93, came to the defense of the "plumbers and firemen" he played against in a radio interview earlier this week.

"I’ll just give you a few of the names of these firemen that I played with and against during those years. How about Bill Russell, the aforementioned, not too bad a player. Wilt Chamberlain, remember that guy? He wasn’t bad. I guess he must have fought fires as well. But in any event, Wilt Chamberlain.”

Paolo Banchero

Jonathan Isaac

Sure, the game quality has improved over time as the game expands globally. It's a different game than it was back in the 1950s when Cousy's Boston Celtics dominated the sport and won six titles in seven years. But, the players were the best in the country during the era.

Comparing players from different eras can spark an exciting conversation because there is no true correct answer.

Published May 20, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.