I’m saying there is no such thing as a SG. Fred can defend some people who do what a ‘traditional shooting guard’ would do, and he cannot defend others playing the same role on offense. He actually does defend whoever the smallest perimeter is on the other team’s, or sometimes a larger one if the small guy is too quick. He probably couldn’t defend either Jalen (too quick) or Durant (too tall). He could defend Beal or Steve Kerr or others who did what a typical SG does, but rely less on athleticism and more on shooting/positioning.
what? He isn’t a consistent dribble drive get to the paint dominant player. That’s not his skillset or capability. And it shouldn’t be his role
You can’t tell me exactly what he is or isn’t yet. He barely played last year. He’s gonna get consistent minutes this year at guard to figure it out. That’s the point. Stone and Ime clearly love him.
I wouldn't worry about 1. Durant's ballhandling and playmaking aren't worse than Green. The only things Durant is inferior to Green are speed and health. As for 2, Joe Joe quoted below answered it well. The price to pay for prioritizing size is losing speed. There's a problem with Durant and Amen defending the wings. Amen should be fine defending the best wing player. But if the best player is the bigger wing, then it'll be hard to find someone for Durant to guard. I think DFS is a fine replacement for Brooks. The problem is that Durant is now occupying a starting wing position. So the Rockets have to decide whether they start Jabari, DFS, or Tari. None of them is good at defending smaller guys. Each has his strengths and weaknesses. Bottomline, the 1-3-1 lineup would work against opponents with traditional SG as their best offensive player. But if Amen needs to defend the bigger wing player, then they'll have to find someone to chase after a smaller guard. None of the choices we have is ideal.
You can say all the right things, and it doesn't mean that it automatically happens. Yes, I feel confident in saying the Rockets tried to empower him last season. I also feel confident in saying that in his backup minutes, he didn't play like it, and people in the organization noticed and feel the same way. Human beings are complicated. The hope is that it will translate more in 2025-26.
Yes I can. He didn’t show the ability to do this in college and he certainly didn’t show this last year at the pro level. It isn’t about minutes it’s about ability. This is like saying if only ty ty Washington played more he would be a great player which is a fallacy and erred logic. If a player doesn’t display the ability on the court he likely doesn’t have that specific skill. Sheppard’s game is shooting and using different angles and finding seams to beat his man not athleticism or moves and he isn’t likely going to get into the paint 400 times a year even on big minutes. And in fairness he should not be expected to do this. His role is to shoot, find ways to facilitate and make plays, find openings and use screens to get to the paint when he can.
Again, you can’t tell me what he can and can’t do at the pro level. He barely played last year. When he did play, he showed flashes of playmaking ability. He’s going to get the minutes at guard to see what he his. Comparing him and Ty Ty Washington is absurd. Reed was taken 3 overall. They are gonna see what they have in him.
Again it’s about ability. I did not say he can’t make plays. In fact I said his role should be to make plays. I responded to DD on his getting to the rim comment and talked specifically about his ability in getting into the paint scoring and making plays consistently in that area isn’t his game. Did you watch him in college? Please watch him in college and tell me your findings. The analogy with ty ty is about ability. Ty ty had more athleticism to get to the paint than Sheppard. Not an overall better player just the ability to explode off the dribble into the paint and even he wasn’t great at it. That’s not sheppard’s game. He’s not Amen. He needs to find crafty ways to do it usually through catching a player out of position or having an open lane to drive.
Once again, you don’t know what his ability is. He barely played last year. He showed flashes. You are admitting this. So they are gonna give him the minutes to find out what he is. I don’t care what he did in college. This isn’t college. Ty Ty doesn’t have more athletic ability. That’s objectively wrong.
You’re right this isn’t college. It’s more competitive and challenging with better defenders and schemes. I said he can find other ways to get to the paint but no one should expect him to be dominant or get to that area consistently. That’s not fair to him.To expect him to get in this area like Amen is absurd which is what this conversation is about. You can argue and hope but that isn’t reality
