I'm not sure we've seen the likes of Reed Sheppard before in the NBA. He's becoming an ultra efficient scorer from 2pt/3pt range and seems to just be touching his potential. He needs to work on his FT concentration, no way he should be under 80-85% and eventually 90 plus. Defensively, he's a playmaker and is quickly evolving his positioning versus gambling approaches. As a playmaker, he's not super creative yet, but he's fundamentally solid. He makes the right play 80-90% of the time, but he still has a few brain farts which is expected at 21 in the NBA. He's a decent rebounder for his size and his stocks grow as his time and experience expands. We all know he's smart and has high BBIQ, but I love he doesn't complain about fouls and when someone goes after them he doesn't back down. The trip move on Bane was the smart equivalent of punching the bully in the nose. That's old school baby! I'm glad Reed has rapidly began to produce and contribute to the team, we need him and he's stepped up. He's looking pretty good with the other starters, but I'm not in a hurry for him to start as long as Ime keeps using him to finish.
Everybody wants to see a little more structured offense where Reed runs PnR with solid screen(s), Amen in the dunker, and KD as the second side creator outlet. The thing is we can't/won't transition to this quickly. Ime prefers equal opportunity "beat your man and make a decision" offense, Amen wants the opportunity to try to be a PG, Sengun wants lots of iso and post up opportunities and doesn't really want to be a screener, KD wants to either iso or chill on the wing every possession etc. And I don't mean KD/Sengun/Amen are wrong or selfish or something. Just that that is their preferred style of play. And they have status, and Ime is a players coach in that way. So there is natural misalignment. If Reed continues to show out, I'm curious to see if/when we see more of Reed initiating during starter minutes or crunch time, and the other guys in structured offensive roles rather than their preferences. I'm not sure it's this season.
The guy who everyone wanted playing over Reed last year....Holiday. And then also Tari and DFS when they get back. Also, Ime can pull his head out of his ass and stagger minutes appropriately. Just because Reed starts doesnt mean hes got to tie all his minutes to other starters. This is really a problem that doesnt exist.
Doesn't generational mean the best player in a generation or at least the best player in their position in a generation? A generation is maybe 8-10 years. Not sure how Chet fits that bill. That means he's needs to be the best centre in the league for like 8 years.
FYI: a generation is roughly defined as the time between parents' birth and their children's birth, so ~20+ years
Well, the Gen-whatever thing kind of shortens that quite a bit. Now it seems that every decade is a new "generation."
No one is ready to say this but...his best comp is Steph Curry. If Sengun is Babu Jokic, Reed is Baby Curry. Even to the point that Curry is barely the PG for his team half of the time because the danger of Curry is that he's running all over the place and that he's going to get an open shot. Warriors are just fine running the offense through Draymond or just anyone else so that Curry can get a pass. Some differences, like how Sengun is a better dribbler than Jokic...Curry is a better dribbler than Reed...but their games are so exactly alike. Of course this is not me saying he will become Curry...just that he plays and puts his stamp on the game in a similar fashion. I mean last night, that was very Curry-esque. How many times have we seen Curry just explode for a bunch of points all of sudden the lead is flipped? I feel like people try hard to compare him to other white PGs tbh lol.
It's the only set shot he takes inside the arc. I'm halfway tempted to see if he'd hit it more consistently as a jumper.
Reed is very, very much Chris Jackson. Not Mahmoud Abdul Rauf, but LSU lightning quick release, explosive scorer Jackson. Minus the tics, of course, but a smallish PG capable of exploding at a moments notice from the perimeter.
I think the problem is Sengun has a slightly better handle than Jokic but Curry is a universe better handler than Reed. Reed doesn't have a good enough handle compared to an average PG this season. Curry's handle is arguably top 10 in history. Yes we can say the rest of the comp is accurate but handling is a critical skill for their size or position. It's like saying Jabari is JJJ minus the rim protection. But the rim protection alone is worth $20m per season. Too big to ignore. Hard to find a comp for Reed because he's a modern player in the more position-less era. It was never possible for a PG to have lesser handles because the other 4 used to suck at playmaking. Now that there's playmakers at any position, you're seeing more teams get by with less handling at PG. You're right though, the comps are fishy.
Not surprising at all. His stats at 36 minutes per game extrapolate to 2.4. That’s top tier. He’s a water bug on defense, his hands are constantly working whoever he’s defending.
