Reed Sheppard Stats Tonight: How did Rockets rookie fare against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's Thunder? (Nov. 8)
Reed Sheppard's search for increased minutes and role continued as the Houston Rockets visited the OKC Thunder on Friday. The Rockets' No. 3 pick only received 6:33 minutes in the first half. He went scoreless after not getting to launch a single shot up despite Houston trailing 75-51 and shooting a measly 6 of 18 from 3 and 40.0% overall.
Sheppard only had one rebound to show for it. He was a +/- -10. He often took the backseat for his veteran teammates, avoiding taking a more aggressive approach with attempts from the floor. His ball-handling was also questionable, which resulted in his limited minutes.
Sheppard found some rhythm in the second half, but it was too late until then. He made two shots on his two attempts and added one rebound and four assists in 12 minutes of second-half action. All of his 12 minutes came in the fourth quarter with the Rockets trailing 98-76.
Here are Reed Sheppard's stats vs. the OKC Thunder:
NBA analyst vouches to 'free' Reed Sheppard after lack of playing time in Houston
The Houston Rockets probably weren't the right team for Reed Sheppard, at least as of now. The Rockets have a deep roster, especially in the backcourt. Coach Ime Udoka relies heavily on starters Fred VanVleet and Jalen Green. Meanwhile, Dillon Brooks is also a key starter, and Amen Thompson is ahead in the pecking order for the defensive-minded Udoka.
NBA analyst Kevin O'Connor doesn't think Sheppard's minutes should be trimmed, though. Here's what the analyst said amid his lack of playing time:
"Fred VanVleet leads the Rockets in minutes at 37.6, but his performance has been underwhelming. He’s averaging just 13.3 points on 13.1 shots per game, shooting a dismal 41.2% from 2 and 27.6% from 3.
"FVV will have better nights ahead of him. But he shouldn't be playing so often when the Rockets just invested the 3rd overall pick into Reed Sheppard, who plays the same position. Sheppard is playing only 9.3 minutes per game."
O'Connor believes the Rockets should restrict VanVleet to 30 minutes and maybe offer 16-20 minutes nightly for Sheppard as it helps them in developing their rookie prospect for the future.
VanVleet also has a $44.9 million player option, which the Rockets think tank has to assess before activating it as they look to invest in their young core.