I think Reed's defense is likely to be the fatal flaw of our starting five should he be the starter. I think having Holiday be the fifth starter is still in play. He can bring the ball up and plays better defense at this point than Reed. Sengun, Amen and KD can all create some offense and Holiday can mostly just take catch and shoot 3s on offense. Reed is showing better playmaking skills than Holiday at this point but Holiday may still be a better overall player at this point. If we hadn't traded for KD this off-season, starting Reed to develop him would be the obvious choice. However, this team with KD (and DFS) is now built to win now. It's not clear that Ime Udoka will choose Reed over Holiday to start.
Right now, it's very clear to 99.99% of people Ime has chosen Reed as the 5th starter. I assume that will increase to 100% when Reed starts again next Tuesday.
Sheppard / Amen / Durant / Smith / Sengun is such a perfect lineup. Synergy throughout. Also, Tari and DFS as first off the bench is deadly. Extend Durant, unload FVV when you can, and let’s go.
Starting Reed in two preseason games means that Ime wants to see how Reed performs with the starters. Ime is using the pre-season as he should- to collect data and evaluate his lineups. Ime is a really good coach and has not made a firm decision based upon two preseason games. Reed Sheppard has earned nothing yet. Reed was really terrible last season and it is unlikely he has grown into a competent NBA starter over one off-season. Aaron Holiday was clearly the better player last year. Holiday is really limited but he was both a much better shooter than Reed last season and a significantly better defender. Ime needs to see how much Reed has improved. Reed will likely be the starter at the beginning of the season- there may be a 90% chance of that. Ime will continue to evaluate whether the starting lineup can excel despite Reed's limitations. If Reed plays similarly to last season, Ime will bench Reed and play Holiday instead within a month of the start of the regular season. That would also mean that we would be shopping for a new starting PG on December 15th. I'm pulling for Reed Sheppard to succeed and become a solid starter this season. That would be an amazing development. It would also be a surprise given how bad he was just last year. The plan was for FVV to be the starter this season and for Reed to develop as the primary backup. FVV's injury has Ime trying to fill that spot with a couple of guys who probably shouldn't be NBA starters right now. Your 99.99% number is nonsense.
Aaron Holiday is a competent NBA backup guard. He's a mediocre defensive player. He plays hard and smart but he's small and really limited. That was still significantly better than Reed Sheppard last season. I want Reed to succeed but he showed very little last season that would suggest that he's ready to be an NBA starter this season. I don't think Reed has proven enough through two pre-season games to make me believe he is qualified to start for any NBA team much less a contender.
I thought Reed looked better at PG stuff last night. His drawing & kicking, attacking & scoring, handling & initiating all looked fine to me. His defense was not perfect, but he did force turnovers like he always has done. Keen to see more of him at the starting point. Also keen to see more of JDD at the point-- that young man has got some Doberman dog genes expressing. Go Rox.
That gambling stuff works for a high scoring game though......well good for the audience.... but if you want a low scoring game gotta go with another option.
Well, I know it's only been two preseason games, but I've changed my vote to "Yes". Reed's game compliments the power packed lineup we have now. He's not gambling as much on defense and playing more straight up and that's likely something Ime wanted to see. He's shown he can penetrate and finish, something FVV had issues with and not really Holiday's style. He's not spectacular, but certainly a solid contributor to our lineup.
Why does DFS who is a 3/4 more 4 have anything at all to do with the PG spot? They aren't going to go with Amen and no other ball handlers .... It's either Shepard, Holiday or Davison in the starting spot.
Exactly, which is why it should have been obvious Reed was the choice unless he faceplanted in camp and preseason.
People talk about Reed's defense, but all I ever see is Reed geting blocks and steals and deflections....he'll be fine
Something to nitpick. He’s a good defensive playmaker, but he does gamble and ball watch to try to make plays too much. Has to find the balance of keeping good team defensive while also using his athletic strengths to make plays on defense too
This. Reed, individually, did quite well last night. The intense spotlight on him is understandable, but if one looks at it from a team standpoint, he has shown to be a great complement to his other teammates in the starting lineup. The ball movement was awesome with Alpi at the hub of the offense with his amazing passing skills and the defense paid a price when they tried to double team him. Amen has started to recognize when to take advantage of the defensive focus on Alpi, KD was KD, Bari was doing his usual sniping, and Reed was able to seamlessly adapt his offense to his teammates which bodes well for his position as the regular starting PG. His ball handling was very good, and even his penetration and passing were good considering that this is the first time that this starting five only played their first organized game together against an NBA opponent. Reed was also disruptive on the defensive side reminiscent a little bit of Stockton's propensity for swiping at the ball causing havoc on the opponent's offense. Of course, this is not comparing him with Reed. Overall, the most surprising and positive outcome of last night's game against the Jazz was the chemistry of the starting five. It is their first game together, but they seem to trust each other and have shown ball movement, although it's very early to make a conclusion, that would make Rick Adelman proud. They look good together, and hopefully, there will be no major injuries to any of them this season.
Unlike most people here, I am not worried about Reed's defense. If FVV, who is shorter and less athletic can be a good defender, Reed can. He needs to learn positioning and leverage, and gain some muscles. But I have confidence that he will improve on defense under Udoka. I am also not worried about him having so-called PG skills. I think he has shown enough for us to affirm that he at least has what it takes to be a secondary, probably primary eventually, ball handler. He needs to work on his ball handling. That should improve over time, just like Amen did. My biggest concern, believe it or not, is his shot. He is clearly a good shooter. But can his shooting translate to the NBA level remains to be seen. I am a firm believer that shooters don't forget how to shoot. So shooting being my biggest concern says a lot about how positive I view his potential. The reason why I worry (kind of) about his shooting is that shooting has a lot to do with mental confidence. He clearly lacked confidence last season. This is the same problem with Jabari, another good shooter who is still not living up to his shooting potential. If Reed can't reach 40% from 3 by the beginning of next season, I'll be really worried because shooting is his ticket to a successful NBA career. That said, last night seems to indicate that the presence of Durant boosted Reed's confidence. It's just one preseason game. But it's encouraging.
yep... and he was mediocre... then he lost his starting job last season and came off the bench... he worked hard... and now hes back in the starting rotation.... nobody should feel entitled due to draft position... they should earn it!
