Me leaving out that he had 9 TOs and no made threes in two games was being nice. But remember, that's why we drafted him. Because of his 3 point percentage. Nothing else about him stood out. That bball IQ can be had later in the draft and as we are seeing so can midrange shooting.
LOL, well maybe nothing else about him stood out to casuals who struggle to evaluate talent, but there's a reason he was getting Steve Nash comps. If the only thing he brought to the table was 3 point shooting, and his 3 wasn't falling, his Summer League performance would have looked VERY different.
His SL performance convinced me that he is PG material right from the start (unlike Amen who I am still waiting for him to develop) because of his poise and his ability to find ways to get his teammates involved. He still needs to improve his handles and first step quickness to be able to beat NBA defenders one-on-one. I am confident that his ball handling will improve. Quickness will be harder because it is largely physically determined. The good thing is, basketball is not 1-on-1. It's 5-on-5. He doesn't have to play iso ball.
Meanwhile...here's Sam Vecenie gushing about Reed for 20 minutes and also saying he might have the highest upside of any player on the Rockets.
First time I have watched the summer league, and it was only because of Reed and man was I impressed.................Houston, we have our PG of the future
LOL, you are setting yourself up for failure and disappointment. I'm sure even Amen knows his future is at the SF spot.
The facial expression of the other guy makes it seem like he thought Sam was a bit unhinged for saying that.
I love Amen and want the best for him. I don't know if a complete non-shooter can be a full time, starting PG now. FWIW, I also don't know if Reed can be a full time, starting PG now. So I'm not declaring either as The Guy at PG. That said, I don't think it actually matters. Ideally, they're both starting on the perimeter in the near future and everyone is happy. They compliment each other, IMO.
I actually think his quickness is probably fine? At least assuming he has the skillset that allows him to pull up from just about anywhere within 30ft. And like you said, it isn't 1-on-1, so even if he could iso, it is probably more efficient to get a ball screen anyway. I do think he could probably handle most bigs that get switched on him (comparable to most guards with that kind of mismatch). He tends to back up and build up a lot of speed to attack those mismatches, which I think has generally been successful. I *do* think he struggled to get off pull up 3s on mismatches in SL, though this feels like something he can probably improve on quite rapidly with more reps. This will likely be a very important shot/skill for him. Stuff like that is how he will attack switching defenses. Of course he can do the mid-range thing too in those cases, but I think a pull-up 3 will make him less predictable. He probably won't be great at attacking the rim (in volume, not raw FG%), though maybe he can have a decent floater game and whatnot. If anything, I'd like to see him build more strength and add some physicality to his game. Obviously he's too small to *really* do much there, but I do think compared to some other successful small guards in the NBA (including FVV), Reed seemed a bit lacking here. Totally expected given his age and everything, but yeah I think I could see this mattering more than quickness per se (but maybe because I already think he's quick enough). Affects both ends of the court too.
And you're setting Reed up for failure thinking that he is our future PG. Its going to take a while for Reed to get used to the pressure that NBA defenses will put on him. Especially after they've seen in SL how to shut him down and get the ball out of his hands. SL was just a bunch of nobodies guarding him. You all think him being defended by the leagues best is going to be easier for him. I got news for you my friend, it won't.
Last 24 hours has been weird. Heard some of the most enthusiastic Reed propaganda last night. Today, Sam Vecenie's love for Reed seems mild compared to the opposing opinions today.
From the videos above, 5 guys keyed in to stop the PnR. I know the Rockets don't have many shooters, but Jabari would go crazy with this space.
Exposed?? It wasn't even concealed that he needs to work on his handle. He's just a combo guard learning to be a full time floor general. I think he'll figure it out after a g league stint and then coming off the bench. Wouldn't worry too much about it.
It's pretty funny to me that this opinion even exists. In Summer League, Sheppard was having to carry a bunch of scrubs that have no business even attempting to play organized basketball....that's not easy for a floor general type that is getting 100% of the defense's attention and the bigs aren't even competent enough or willing to set even the most basic of picks for him to help him out. Being the only person on the roster capable of dribbling a basketball is not something he'll have to deal with ever again....unless he chooses to play Summer League next year. Having competent players around him is going to make things night and day easier for him, he may even have one or two guys capable of passing HIM the ball.
You really think the opposing teams best perimeter defender is going to be guarding Reed? Is Reed going to be playing alongside Nate Williams and N'Faly Dante during the regular season?
