The Houston Rockets will be without Kevin Durant for at least the next two games due to a family matter. While losing your star is never ideal, it now opens a window for Reed Sheppard to step into a bigger role.
Sheppard, coming off the best game of his young career, is expected to make his first start of the season for Houston in Durant's absence. And while Sheppard has had a great season so far, it's been off the bench, with the second unit, while playing less than half of the game.
Now is an opportunity for the Rockets to see if Sheppard is ready to handle more minutes and the spotlight. That is the ultimate goal for the third overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft. After 66 career games, this could be his trial run to see if he can take on star-level responsibility.
Sheppard is currently averaging 13.6 points per game, while shooting 48.8% from three-point range. His confidence, which seems to grow with each outing, was on full display Friday night when he was mic'd up during his career-best performance against the Denver Nuggets.
The former Kentucky Wildcat scored 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including five triples.
Reed Sheppard is staring at a big opportunity
Durant often serves as a savior for the Rockets' offense, which will now be without that safety blanket. Without him, there is an opportunity to see how Sheppard might fill the void of having one less initiator.
And the timing might be best, too, following his performance Friday.
“Just more scoring, and more pick-and-roll ball handling,” Nuggets head coach David Adelman said after the game. “A complete threat on the scouting report. It just adds another layer. I think all teams would love to have a guy like that who, at any moment, can get hot and flip a game. You have to guard him. He can get hot and hit five threes in a quarter. That's what that kid can do.”
Sheppard has historically risen to the occasion when given more responsibility. He averaged 19.7 points in three starts last year. And, according to Cleaning The Glass, the Rockets are +33.9 in 65 possessions when Sheppard plays alongside Amen Thompson, Durant, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun – four other starters. With Durant sidelined, now is the time to lean more into that potential as the natural step in Sheppard's progression.
Sheppard credited Fred Van Vleet with helping unlock his big performance Friday. “Fred told me in one of the timeouts right before I went out, he was like ‘get in the middle of the pick and roll, come off and shoot the three'. Then just going out and doing that and seeing the first couple fall… my teammates put me in position to make some open shots,” Sheppard said.
Playing alongside Sengun could create more catch-and-shoot opportunities on kick-outs, while playing alongside Thompson could help the Rockets push the pace even more, leading to more opportunities for Sheppard in transition.
The time is now to see what Sheppard is truly capable of. Keeping him in the second unit for 23 minutes a game during his second season seems underwhelming – especially when the opportunity to shine has arrived.
