I went back and watched the 4th quarter again....there's so much wrong, but almost none of it has anything to do with Reed Sheppard. The primary issue is the really stupid zone that Ime has them running. It's just dogshit. As soon as Wemby pulls Sengun out to the FT line, it's cooked every time. If Sheppard chases Castle and abandons his zone, it leads to a wide open 3 in his zone. If Sheppard doesn't abandon his zone and chase Castle, it leads to a wide open layup if Durant doesn't abandon his zone. If Sheppard doesn't abandon his zone and Durant abandons his zone to defend the layup, it leads to a wide open 3 corner 3. If Sengun doesn't abandon his zone to guard Wemby at the FT line, it leads to a wide open shot from the FT line. Most of the defensive lapses were due to the zone simply being awful and different guys abandoning their assignments to help in the holes in the zone. Other issues were guys like Amen, KD, and Sengun ball watching instead of boxing out to help get rebounds. Ime's zone has got to go.
Looks like double big team and its resulting zone defense needs some fine tuning on its applications. Not in the start of a game (setting the tone) , and not in the 4th Q.
Yes, he should try to be more consistent on D, but his hands are elite - he may never be a stay in front guy, but he is still a winning player. DD
I don't disagree with your idea here at all. And I think that was the original plan, give them the opportunities when able while FVV is the primary point guard and polish them up over the offseason. Problem is the injury to FVV moved the timeline up on both of these guys and they just aren't quite ready today. That doesn't mean they won't be ready by the time the playoffs roll around .... Between now and then they both need to improve by leaps and bounds as actual point guards. I don't think Stone will give up on either of them this season ... but he might make a move for another guard which pushes the timeline back to them being ready for the bigtime "next year." I wonder if you could pry Cason Wallace away from OKC ..... Or maybe Jose Alvarado from NOP??
Sounds like a fair assessment to me. I actually feel like zone defense might entice Reed to gamble even more. There's a "free safety" aspect to it where you're guarding an area and primarily watching the ball. As the ball is skipped from side to side there's a lot of scrambling and shifting meaning you have to sell harder on closeouts and therefore get beat off the dribble more often, hence trying to make plays with hands instead of feet. This is part of why zone typically isn't used in the NBA; you run it at lower levels where outside shooting is less lethal and players don't have the size and athleticism to get into the paint in the blink of an eye and blow up your entire scheme.
I agree man. It accentuates his tendency to ball watch. The kid has the feet/athleticism to stay in front of most players. Use it
I see it as progress actually. He used to have his moments normally during garbage time. Now he’s able to shine in meaningful minutes. If the trend continues, sooner or later he’ll contribute during crunch time when the game is on the line. Positive contribution that is. Hopefully sooner.
Ime started playing zone last season when Reed wasnt even playing much. He plays it a bunch this year when Reed isnt even on the court. He started playing zone because of the double big so they dont have to chase guys and switch.
Shhh. Don't say obvious truths. It'll make those Ime plays a zone because of Reed clowns realise they don't actually know what they watch during a basketball game.
Let me play them for a moment... Cam Whitmore never learned to pass because Reed couldn't get open. Amen Thompson can't shoot 3s because he thinks what's the point with Reed around. Kevin Durant turns the ball over too much because Reed is so short he can't see him. Yao Ming would get hurt so much because he would have to rotate to cover up Reed's blown defensive assignment. James Harden got fat because Reed introduced him to his mom's cooking. Jeff Green can't get on the court because Reed just jumps off the bench and checks himself in before the old man can sit up. Aaron Holiday is having to pretend to be a PG to make up for Reed's bad handles.
People dont want to see this as a developmental year because of KD but its what it is. Another year of development. I've been saying it over and over again. KD is sort of irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. As is Fred. This team cannot and should not depend on KD. As far as I'm concerned, he too should get yanked if he's playing bad. If one of Sengun, Reed or Amen (I've more or less given up on Jabari) doesnt become a Top 10 player in the world then the rebuild was a failure and nothing else matters. Not KD and not Fred. We arent winning a title if this doesnt happen. Let alone multiple titles. And that isnt going to happen with Amen relegated to dunker spot duties, not letting Sengun shoot 3s and not playing Reed Sheppard because he gives up a few buckets.
Maybe a lot of people here still traumatized by picking Morris over Kawhi.. so when we pick just before Spurs in the lottery, they will compare the 2 players..
It's one thing to compare them, it's another to continuously girl-fight about it well past exhaustion. Nobody here is traumatized by not drafting Kawhi.
I agree, but Reed is not a budding superstar so they should play him a lot for the next 2 months. If he hasn’t improved his defense by then, they will need to make a trade for another guard. Amen has to be prioritized as a guard even if it takes him all year to get comfortable. If you take him out of that role who is going to drive to the basket to free up perimeter shooters?
The entire objective of offense is to get your best shooters the ball in advantageous positions. Reed should be shooting 10 threes a game..... DD
