I don’t see us keeping Jock Landale long term and who knows if we’ll resign Steven Adams.. My vision for the future is playing combinations of Jabari, Sengun at power forwards along with Clingan at center. Or even Jabari at Small forward in crunch time when we need size.
Can't work, you simply can't run Sengun and Clingan together.... and certainly not with Amen. That would be 3 non shooters, and 2 of them can't switch and could only defend the 5. Drafting Clingan means trading Sengun.
I feel like Sheppard is really being under valued. He doesn’t have to guard the pg. He can tag a shooter. He won’t provide length for help defense but his quick hands and instincts should help. If Jalen does make it, it’s because he improved his 3pt shot AND we improved the spacing and transition game around him to where he can optimize his athleticism. Tari, Cam, Amen, Sengun also benefit from a shooter. When I watch Shep, I see a guy that is pretty fast WITH the ball as well.
Non of these guys are projected to be stars so who cares. Draft them and have them come off the bench. Reed would probably come off the bench aswell. It’s up to the coach to make it work somehow.
Our current PG of the future, Amen Thompson. If he lockdown other NBA players last yr, Im sure he can guard Sheppard.
It's a little unfair to pick apart one guy's game without acknowledging the flaws in the other, don't you think? We don't know whether Sheppard can attack the rim better or play lead guard, but we've also never seen Topic shoot the 3-pointer or defend at an above average level. I also think some of the strengths here you reference for Topic (IQ and work ethic) seem to be qualities we keep hearing about Sheppard as well. All of these guys have strengths and weaknesses on paper, and like with any prospect before a draft, we're just projecting. It's a total crapshoot as to whether any of them pans out. Anyone who says they think they know doesn't actually know anything. Again, I'd be happy with either of these guys and I think both could address pretty guy needs down the road. But both are a gamble, as is any other player they're looking to take at 3.
This season the Rockets were 9th in defensive rating and 4th in rebounds (only 13th in pace). They were 20th in offensive rating and 23rd in 3P%. Our offense was much more of an issue than our size. Sengun was doing a lot more bullying than getting bullied.
I'm a Castle fan, but not sure he makes sense for this team. He would fit well on the Hornets between Lamelo and Brandon Miller
You don't pick a 3rd or 4th center #3 overall. You don't pick anyone #3 overall if you think their long term role is of the bench. IMO Sheppard helps the starting unit either immediately if you dump Green now or in his 2nd year if you give Green the one more season and you move on from FVV after this upcoming season as expected.
Sheppard is the ideal long-term fit next to Amen and Sengun. FVV is great, but he's 30 and Amen and Sengun are 21. I wouldn't be surprised if FVV is moved at the deadline or next summer due to his short contract.
Sheppard is a very good college defender. The only players clearly better than him in this draft on that end is Castle and Dunn. The question is how will be in the NBA - because he is short and has short arms. His hands are amazing, they let him not only get steals, but they also allow him to keep his man in front of him and ball handlers have said he is difficult to get around because of his hands. Like every other part of his game - Sheppard shouldn't be good at defense - but he is. I expect him to at worst be a neutral defender, and I think that with his effort and intelligence, he will be a good to very good defender. He won't ever be as good as Castle if Castle is healthy and motivated.
When we were sitting at #9 in the draft, I think that the Rockets intention was to trade the pick for future picks. Moving up to #3 makes trading the pick more difficult. Before we had #9 in a weak draft, so if we traded it for a likely lotto pick, then no matter where that pick landed in the lottery it was a fair exchange. With #3 in a weak draft, you can't guarantee that you'll be in the top half of the lottery so it makes getting fair value more difficult. Sure the Rockets would love to flip the pick in a package for a star but that's easier said than done. Obviously, there's not a ton of star players available. Additionally, trading for an aging star doesn't seem like a good move so that further thins out the pool of potential trade targets. Maybe you could convince a guys like Donovan Mitchell to play here but is he really the type of guy that we need? Sure, he'd immediately make us better but is he a #1 option a championship team? Probably not. My guess is that the #3 pick will be more appealing to the Rockets than anything that they can get in a trade so they will keep the pick. Sarr is projected to be gone so he's not really an option. Washington needs a PG so maybe they take Topic or Dillingham. Possibly, they go get a PG in free agency and draft Risacher instead. Those 3 are generally who's being mocked to them. For Houston, the mocks are mostly Clingan or Sheppard. Clingan didn't test well at the combine. He didn't show the athleticism that was expected. Add that to the fact that he doesn't fit well with Sengun and he doesn't seem like a good fit for Houston. BTW Yes, I know that Clingan shot the 3 very well at the combine but I've lived through the Mirsad Turksan's "greatest 3 point shooting display in history" so I'm not placing much value on one shooting session. Sheppard is obviously a phenomenal shooter. He did measure out under 6'2" ( 6'1.75") without shoes. But he also surprised everyone by turning in the highest vertical at the combine (42"). He's also a good passer, plays good defense, rebounds well for his size and is actually a great shot blocker for his size. Currently, our biggest weakness is shooting. Sheppard certainly helps there as he's one of the best shooters in the history of college basketball. He also pairs up very nicely with Amen Thompson. Both are athletic, can defend , can pass and Sheppard helps offset Thompson's lack of shooting and Thompson's size offset's Sheppard's lack of size. To me, Sheppard seems like the obvious pick. He could immediately take over the backup pg minutes next season. I guess that what I like best about him is that he has an elite skill and it's something that we definitely lack on the current roster. Over the next year or two, the Rockets are going to have to make decisions on some players because we have a bit of a logjam at the wing spots. Regardless of who stays and who goes, we are always going to need shooting and being able to get that shooting from a guy who can also contribute in other ways too is huge..
