Duke basketball: JJ Redick holds NBA record, then doesn’t

A former Duke basketball sharpshooter briefly owned a Christmas Day record.

Despite his relatively cold hand in a 111-98 loss on the road against the Miami Heat (1-1), New Orleans Pelicans (1-1) shooting guard JJ Redick gained sole possession of an NBA Christmas Day record. Yet within only a couple of hours, the all-time Duke basketball scorer would no longer boast the high mark.

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Redick began the outing with 23 all-time trifectas on the league’s annual ratings-bonanza day. That was enough to have him in a tie for the most such 3-pointers with shooting guard James Harden, whose Houston Rockets were not in action this go-round.

And by finally hitting a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter, Redick seized the record with his 24th splash from downtown across his 11 Christmas Day appearances in 15 NBA seasons. As a pro, the 36-year-old, who sits No. 7 among active players in career 3-point percentage at 41.6, is now 24-for-64 from deep on Dec. 25 (37.5 percent).

Overall, by the time Redick fouled out a few minutes later, the 6-foot-3 sniper had a subpar box score: eight points, two rebounds, and a steal in 24 minutes while shooting 1-for-7 from the field, including 1-for-5 from beyond the arc, plus 5-for-5 from the foul line.

Later in the day, Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant, who entered the day with 22 Christmas Day 3-pointers, drained three triples in a 123-95 win on the road over the Boston Celtics. Also, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James had 22 Christmas Day 3-pointers entering his team’s home game on Friday night versus the Dallas Mavericks.

Another Duke basketball product almost displays record-breaking performance

Two other Bayou Blue Devils alongside JJ Redick poured in a combined 60 points in the defeat.

First, fifth-year forward Brandon Ingram finished with 28 points, three assists, and two rebounds while shooting 7-for-17 from the field, including 4-for-8 from three, plus 10-for-11 from the charity stripe.

Meanwhile, second-year forward Zion Williamson recorded 32 points, 14 rebounds, one assist, and a steal while shooting 11-for-20 from the field, including 0-for-1 from long range, plus 10-for-15 on his freebie tries. The 20-year-old’s point total ranks No. 2 among those under 21 on Christmas Day, trailing the 34 that James dropped during a loss as an 18-year-old rookie in 2003.

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