Yeah at this point it’s about readiness when your number is called for him and Cam. We know injuries are inevitable. Use the G-League now at this stage to get your conditioning right, work on your jump shot, and try to expand your game. Both these guys can play. It’s just the matter or the team doing what’s best to win by giving more minutes to the 7 best players vs doing what’s best for Reed and Cam getting PT and stats. But at some point Jalen and FVV are going to have games off for injuries, or rest. You gotta make sure that when your number is called then that Reed and Cam are ready to roll. That’s the only thing that matters now to them. Because you won’t get many of those opportunities if you fumble it in the NBA.
The Gleague team needs a budding coach like Nurse or Finch again. The OKC Blue have outdone the Vipers in the last 2 years.
Might not be a bad idea for him to go dominate in the G League a little bit, work on getting a little more comfortable pulling the trigger. He has barely ever started at PG for a team, he needs to learn what that feels like. G League is actually good for that. I think 5-6 games would be plenty.
No we just have @roslolian the dumbest poster in all of ClutchFans here. Dumbest and nastiest with no sense of decorum or American message board etiquette.
Exactly this. It's why Cam is down there. And right now, Reed is no different. If he isn't ready and can't do the things necessary when he comes in, he should be sent down until he's ready. His "just want to help don't want to get in anyone's way" is a hindrance at this level on a team that doesn't have a true FVV alternative.
I watched the Lakers vs. Thunder game last night and closely watched why the rookie Knecht is making an impact on the team. The difference between him and Reed is that he plays with confidence and lets his shot fly whenever he was open. He missed some shots but he kept firing and was relatively successful. I believe Reed is still a better shooter but he has to start playing with confidence and believe in his ability to make his shots. He should start thinking that he is no longer much of a rookie after 20 NBA games.
Sheppard is trying to take after FVV so much that he's emulating his rookie season stats. I want to see that aggressive player he was at Kentucky and the SL. His extreme passivity is doing neither him nor the team any favors. Phil Jackson once said that it's easier to dial an aggressive player back than it is to light a fire under a passive player. I hope for Sheppard's case that's not true.
Sheppard is definitely not having the rookie season most of us thought he was going to have. But maybe this is a good thing. Sheppard is trying to build his foundation from the bottom up. It’s too easy for shooters like Sheppard to get pigeonholed as 3 point specialists. I see Sheppard putting effort on the defensive end. He’s got quick hands. And you can see he is trying to help even when he does not have the ball. For a shooter like Sheppard, his shot is going to start falling eventually. So he isn’t taking shots away from the other guys yet. But he is providing solid defense and a strong basketball IQ. But at this point he still very young and though he’s been pedestrian, he’s getting his feet wet.
He is having exactly the type of rookie season I said he would. He might turn into a good role player someday, but there was no realistic chance that he would perform this early in his career on a deep team. He has a lot to overcome physically to compete in the NBA. Regardless of what idiots like BTG say. Amen is our future PG. Sheppard was chosen because we needed outside shooting not to be our future PG. He would not have been the third pick in even an average draft.
He’s not making glaring mistakes. He’s playing competent defense. His shot is definitely not there as he’s only shooting 37.5% despite taking mostly wide open shots. Before Reed darted up the draft board, he was seen as likely between 9-12. Teams saw something special in Reed that caused him to catapult into a top 3 pick.
Amén is a special talent, most would say he is the most talented on the team - and that includes Alpi who is a legitimate top 10 NBA player. I know Victor was the generational talent everyone was beaming about in 2023; but Amen looks to be every bit a generational talent too, with his 7’2” wing span from the wing positions is incredible + genius basketball IQ acumen. Look at Amen’s stats, and they are all meat and potatoes, there is no raw sugar in those stats. Reed has one purpose, and that is to develop his 3 point shot into a 45-50% clip. And Reed will be expected to be shooting at minimum 8-10 3-pointers a game once he gets truly acclimated to the NBA speed. Amen, Green, and Reed all bring something to the table. They all can handle the basketball and play gritty defense. Amen is on an absolutely separate stratosphere on the defensive end - his defense is so good it is offense quality. So your point that Amen is the best player is duly noted, and I’m 100% in agreement. Amen can play PG, SG, SF and he’d be a genuine all star!
Very good post. I'm not down on Sheppard. I think he can be a very useful NBA player and it really is very dependant on being what he was drafted to do. Shoot the ball and shoot it well! If he doesn't do that, he won't be a useful NBA player. He would've have been in a much better position if he would have been drafted by a tanking team, not one vying for a playoff spot.
Yeah I agree he's definitely not a #3 pick in a typical draft and with his play so far he should spend some time getting starters minutes in the g- league. Get him comfortable shooting again, more time with the ball in his hands making plays. He will come around.
