(Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
The Houston Rockets took one of the best bucket-getters of this draft class.
Reed Sheppard can hoop like the best of them, and his shot-making ability from all three levels was simply mesmerizing in college.
Nonetheless, just like all young players entering the league, he wasn’t exempt from some red flags.
For starters, his defense left plenty to be desired, and he’s not exactly tall or athletic, boasting a 6-foot-3 wingspan that could make him a perennial target on the defensive end of the floor.
More than that, he was rarely asked to run the pick-and-roll in college and some were worried about how that may translate to the pros.
However, the Rockets didn’t hesitate to draft him.
When asked about it, GM Rafael Stone claimed that they had seen more than enough film to believe that he could make that transition at the next level (via SiriusXM NBA Radio).
“We’d seen enough to be pretty comfortable that it would be an easy transition for him”
Rockets GM Rafael Stone didn’t have the same hesitations that others did about Reed Sheppard and the pick & roll.@termineradio | @tomcrean | #NBA2KSummerLeague pic.twitter.com/itlyqOCMW8
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) July 15, 2024
The Rockets have a bit of a logjam in the backcourt.
Fred VanVleet is expected to be the starter for now, with Sheppard having the upside to take that spot a couple of years from now.
They also have Amen Thompson, who can play anywhere on the court from the one to the four, and Aaron Holiday.
At the two, they have Jalen Green as the starter, with Cam Whitmore and AJ Griffin joining Thompson, Sheppard and Holiday in the race for playing time.
They’re putting together an exciting team that should be quite fun to watch, especially if Sheppard’s absurd shot-making is there from day one.
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