A lot of us are prisoners of the moment. People throw around terms like "generational," "scrub" very quickly because letting things play out is complicated, I guess. Just today, on this very forum, I read that a person was really mad at the head coach coming off a 24 point road victory because the starters were left in the game too late in the 4th quarter.
Reed rips, grateful to have him as a backup point guard. I trust him completely to start against eastern conference play-in fodder. We should be looking at his defense over time against the top tier isolation hunting teams before we make it the main thing we train imo. I’d be happy to let him keep doing what he’s doing for now, looks good.
He is currently 15th (!!!) in BPM 45th in EPM (4th on the team, and 2nd in his class behind only Edey who played limited games) 90+ Percentile in the league in Darko DPM and LEBRON Overall 51th in average impact index (Huge Nerd Plus-Minus) That’s really really really good guys!! That’s hard for basically a rookie player!! I’m also willing to bet on his intelligence and work ethics to keep improving, on both ends of the floor.
Being really angry at the coach for playing his starters late in the game in a blowout is over the top, but it is a valid criticism. Our multiple days of rest schedule has ended. We are playing virtually every other day and with multiple back to backs for the next 2 months. There is also the injury concern. I think Ime is a good coach, but he has a lot to learn. Load balancing a 37 year old key player should be high on his agenda. A serious injury to Durant, Amen, or Sengun will pretty much end our aspirations for this season. Why take the chance? Part of a fan board is to criticize coach decisions, players, and the league. This would be a very boring place is all we did was rah, rah, rah our way through the season. Ime has several areas where he needs to get better for us to win a championship. Pointing those things out, even after a win, should be expected. The same as it should be expected for the players.
The "really angry" overreaction part IS the hot take. Valid, constructive criticism and angry rants after blowout wins that a coach should be fired are NOT the same thing. Hot takes always have some morsel of truth deep down to them - it's the massively distorted context and subsequent read that makes them insufferable.
Does anyone trust Reed to eventually start as PG and lead the team in that role in the playoffs, or would it be wise to try to get another veteran point guard before the trade deadline?
It’s really according to what’s out there to get and what we have to give up to get it. I also really like the way our starting unit is looking with Tari. If we do go after a vet, it should be with the idea that they are taking a place on the bench if/when Reed is promoted to the starting unit. Said vet would also be insurance in case Reed is injured or doesn’t pan out as the backup Pg (very unlikely, but that is what insurance is for).
Yes. He's got everything you want in a starting PG except game experience. He needs more opportunities to improve his ball handling and decision making against double-teams and under pressure. He also needs to continue to hone his defense against different players and situations. Oh, and he needs to take open shots more often, he's bred to pass the ball to open teammates, but he's the 2nd best shooter on the team and needs to recognize he's often the better option. But I believe he can be our guy.
Reed is not going to start in the playoffs. That is not going to happen no matter what. No amount of “learning curve” and playing him to “get him up to speed” will have him ready for the playoffs. He’ll be looking worse than Jalen Green (minus the 38 point outburst). If they think they are a contender, they should go get a point guard. If they think they aren’t a contender (obviously won’t say this publicly) and/or have written this year off and are waiting for Fred to get back next year, they should continue on with Point Amen/Sengun/Reed.
I don’t believe the worse than Jalen part, but I agree it will be very difficult for Reed to be ready for the playoffs when the holding, grabbing, and bullying becomes regular league approved defense. His shooting will still be a great weapon off the bench. I also don’t think we need a PG to be championship contenders this year, but that is an argument that has gotten tired on this board and there is not more to add to it.
I'm not sure, but I lean towards trying to get another veteran point guard that can be trusted to facilitate just to be on the safe side. Rockets are near the bottom of the league when it comes to turnovers and Reed may need more time to develop into a floor general type role. Right now I think he's a better scorer and motion shooter than playmaker. I'm not sure who can be gotten for cheap to serve in that role though.
If Ime doesn't start Reed with FVV out, then he won't be starting him next season either. I do think that Ime should give him some more chances to start this season; we'll see if it happens.
