I agree with this 110%. Fred wasn't great last year, he was simply acceptable, adequate. I wanted an upgrade at the position - finances really didn't allow that. I was content with the team retaining him simply because there were no other viable options (once they signed DFS instead of a guard), the contract wasn't a bad one - until it was due to injury. I wanted another guard because no one else on the team possesses that "point guard" skill set, Holiday can't run an effective offense, Reed isn't ready, Amen can't shoot and runs into a wall against a set defense as the ball handler - none of the above seems to be able to run an effective pick and roll, the most fundamental play in basketball. Bring the ball up and organize the offense, protect the ball - calm down the offense when things go haywire, run the pick and roll and make the right decisions, create shots for others, and defend. Without FVV this team totally lacks an experienced player with that skillset, Reed isn't quite ready and Ime doesn't trust him - now we have Point Durant. He's great and all, but not a substitute for a point guard.
Props to Amen for his 14 assist game (to 4 TO's). Hope to see a lot more double digit assist games now that we're running a lot less double big.
He could have had 20 assists tonight if guys were hitting their 3’s in the first half. I don’t know what you guys have been watching, but Amen is setting up his teammates better than anyone on this team since about game 20. His expected assists are on par with FVV last year and will surpass him by the end of the year. He can’t make his teammates hit their wide open 3’s he is creating for them. A huge part of being a pg is getting into the lane and setting up his teammates. Amen brings the ball up, attacks the rim better than anyone on the team, and dishes to wide open perimeter players consistently. Get another consistent 3 pt shooting starter in here and Amen’s assists will go through the roof. I wanted Reed to start next to Amen, because they have good chemistry, but Reed has got to quit shooting his way to the bench which he has done too frequently lately. You don’t need a PG to set up the offense, when you don’t run an offense. How anyone could watch the last several games and declare Reed more equipped to be a PG is just looking at his height.
Amen certainly making a case. He played well tonight in this role Amen will have a 15-15-15 game at some point in his career.
“Positionless” is overblown and a misunderstood concept. Teams still have point guards. Cunningham dominates the ball. So does SGA. So does Luka. So does Brunson. So does Maxey. With that said Amen is turning into a good playmaker. If he can do this consistently he has a chance to be very effective. He has 30 assists last 3 games. He finds shooters in the corner or in the paint. I like Amen. Now about movement I think this is overstated as well. Some of the top teams and top coaches have an iso heavy system. OKC, BOS, PHI, MIN, MIA are in the top 10 in iso frequency. OKC is 2nd. ISO depends on personnel. All these teams including Houston have at least 2 guys that can get a shot by themselves and draw doubles. Houston is fine running their Horns elbow sets or double screen up top.
The last few games has shown us that using Amen as a slashing lead playmaker with Sengun as a PNR/hub partner and an elite offball spacer (KD) is a really effective combo. It may sound strange, but Sheppard could potentially step into this role in our post-KD years. Obviously not comparing Reed and KD, just mentioning from their fit in that offensive approach.
He wouldn’t be in a KD role since he doesn’t shoot mid range well or iso but as a 3 pt shooter only sure.
Really? ISO sure, but I feel like Sheppard has shown a ton of potential with his dribble-pull-up midrange game. That’s how he scored a ton of his points against the Pistons.
This is a big misconception. Rockets offense is primarily based on iso at the elbows, FT line, or top of key with the 2 stars either screening each other and rolling or from others. They can also look for shooters here. They also play a lot of horns actions that set up back doors or DHO’s attacking the rim. They also use a lot of double screens to get to the paint and staggered to free shooters. this is the basic Rockets offense.
I agree with this. I hope this is the long-term outcome, but Reed has at least another year to be an above average NBA starting guard. I’d like us to bring in a good shooting guard that plays defense to start the rest of the year. Let Reed continue to be that offensive injection off the bench and work on the other parts of his game. I think adding someone like Monk would make us contenders this year, as long as our rotation players are healthy come playoff time. Tari’s health is extremely important to this team as currently constructed. KD also needs some rest. If any of KD, Sengun, or Amen are unavailable come playoff time, we are screwed. Monk is just an example of a gettable player that would fit the bill. There may be others, but I have my doubts on being able to get Ayo and Alvarado is not starter material to me. Somebody suggested Scottie Pippen Jr, but obtaining another guy that has been hurt all year is a real gamble.
The thing about Amen with the ball in his hands is that his lack of shooting hurts you less than it does off the ball. One of the main goals for a drive-and-dish point guard is to collapse the defense into the paint anyways. That's why I think he should have the ball in his hands more often than Reed does, especially right now since Reed's decisionmaking and court vision are less advanced than Amen's. Reed does probably have the better handles of the two, but he also lacks Amen's long stride and elite quickness/overall athleticism. Mostly, we want our best floor spacers to be off the ball more often, ready to hit threes if the defense does fully collapse, or pull their defenders away from the paint so Amen or Sengun can score around the rim. That said, I think you can do some things to get Reed some chances on-ball. There are some Amen/Reed PnR actions you can do, things like that. Also, Reed is kind of the de facto point guard when Amen is off the court to rest since we just don't have anybody else right now. I think long-term we're going to want to maximize their chances to play together since they compliment each other very well, but right now, it is what it is.
He doesn’t shoot a lot of mid range dude. A lot of his shots are in that 10-12 ft area. He is only shooting 36% mid range. You never see him pull up from 15-20 ft like Jabari or KD. That’s not his game. Never been. Mid range is 15 ft and inside 3 pt line. KD loves to shoot at the elbows. NBA defined mid range/% The percentage of points scored by a player or team that are that are from mid-range field goals (2 point field goals from outside the paint)
Once Ime gets his head out of his ass, Reed will become the starting PG for the next decade plus. Amen is good for spot PG duties but Reed was made for the role. Hemingway is likely not happy with the poll results so far.
