But let’s also remember he can take over games and has. Against good NBA teams. Just think, going into this year we had this incredible young core and we didn’t even know what Reed could do. Every one of them have regressed. Ime is committing coaching malpractice regularly. And maybe KD, in spite of his excellence, is a team killer. Look at Phoenix.
I disagree and would say all a round he was playing very well. Just his approach. He’s literally scared to do anything now. The two have gone hand in hand. I actually called it earlier in the thread, young players get imprinted and molding him into a bulldog D player is dumb Sheppard had* it. Idk if he’ll get it back. we’ve won 6-7 games solely because of him thus far
He doesn’t have that bounce - you see when he’s hot he’s super confident but that’s more a 6 man every now and then hot… He’s not even good as rookie JG … and we all know how raw he was
No consistent self-creation. Being a 6'1 off-ball streak shooter + defensive liability not gonna cut it when factoring where he was drafted. To his credit he's had some truly impressive offensive games this year so I have some hope still. Imes refusal to run any off ball actions for him is not making it any easier either. Tbh if he had the same great freshman shooting season at a non blue blood school he's probably a 3-4 year guard and is a late first rounder.
while it’s true that Ime doesn’t run any plays or off-ball action for him, the majority of his shots are still open spot up jumpers or quick shots in transition, and he’s taking a lot of shots Why am I running you around 5 different screens just to get the same looks you’re already getting and not knocking down? The shots Reed gets, good shooters should be hitting in their sleep.
Look - Reed Shepherd is being asked to be a VOLUME shooter, something he has NEVER been his entire life he is a team first guy who moves his body, moves the ball and takes opportunistic shots. It is a MAJOR transition and he is struggling with it.....he might not ever get there........ So, have patience because if it works he will be a STUD like Mark Price......if it doesn't you can always reset him to his comfort zone and hit go. Our problem is that we have NO ONE that can create on this team with the ball in their hands against a packed lane......when teams play 3 guards, we lose our ****. DD
He’s shitty navigating screens? It’s a problem. And kind of a strategy/coaching problem. I’d almost rather Reed guard the big/roller on a switch than be slow getting around the screen. He’s late 100% or the time.
Report from the Hornets game: Don't have a lot to add to what others have said. I've seen bad defensive games from Reed, and this wasn't one of them. Some good moments taking away space from attackers, some bad moments getting around screens. If you watched the whole game, not just that clip with Miller, Reed did a pretty good job of staying in front of his man. He's gotten much better at that since the start of the season and has generally maintained a better level. On the shooting: I'm still mystified why he's been long or short on the 3's. It's not bad form, it's not off left or right, but this is his home court and the calibration should not be off this often. I wonder if there's some factor we're not aware of, like maybe he's doing weights and has lost some feel for how much force he's putting on the ball? Whatever it is, it seems to be messing with distance, not aim. As a general rule, I cut Reed slack for things he's working on but not yet getting quite right. At the moment, it's using screens or the 3 threat to get inside and develop more of a layup/runner/short jumper game. There's reason to believe his scoring percentage on these plays will improve as he gets a feel for what he can do where. What I don't cut him slack for is regression to bad habits. So in this game the two plays that bothered me most were (1) slapping Knueppel on the back of the head when he was trailing the play and had no shot at the block and (2) trying a long ball over the top to Clint that was interception bait and got picked off easily. Every young player has inclinations that make them prone to certain dumb mistakes. Two of Reed's are the hero pass and the make-up swipe after he's beaten. I think the math shows he's reduced these since the beginning of the season. But these were two instances of the bad habits returning. One general thought about the team: I basically agree with Stone's suggestion that events, starting with Fred's injury, have conspired to make this not our year. But in some of these games against young teams or bench players, it mostly looks to me like we've lost our hunger. I'm looking at the way our opponents play — hustling on defense, making life hell for us, fighting for every ball, giving everything they have — and I think to myself, "That used to be us." Maybe it's that we used to play like Brooks, and now we play like KD. Or maybe we've become mentally dependent on KD. Or maybe it's just that we used to be a mediocre team fighting our way to the top, and now we think we're near the top and don't have to fight like that anymore. The lesson of these losses is: We do.
i'm not a super unc like some of you so maybe others can chime in our Steve Nash was perceived his first 4 years in the league :
Reed is not broken. He is just not physically ready to be a prominent player on a good NBA team. He will be a good rotation piece at some point, whether it’s here or elsewhere. Expectations for this kid have always been too high.
