Reed Sheppard Needs Time to Cook in Houston Rockets System

Despite a less-than-pretty win over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, the Houston Rockets still have plenty of work to do in digging themselves out of the recent hole they dug.

From Jan. 30 to Feb. 8, the team suffered a six-game losing streak, at first losing a few tougher games before bad play started to snowball. All in all, the team fell from No. 2 to No. 4 before finally finding a victory over Toronto.

The skid largely stemmed from injuries. Third-year forward Jabari Smith Jr. has been sidelined for a hand injury for weeks. All-Star center Alperen Sengun missed the first several games of the slide, and veteran point guard Fred VanVleet the last several, with a few other Rockets missing games here and there.

Suffice it to say, the Rockets desperately needed production any way they could get it. And the stepping up of rookie guard Reed Sheppard would’ve been welcomed.

But while Sheppard has seen more opportunity overall in the latest stretch — playing 14.6 minutes in his last six — he hasn’t been much better than his early-season self. In that span, he’s averaged just 5.0 points on a measly 26% shooting, with 2.5 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.0 steal.

Those stats even include a 16-point outburst against the Brooklyn Nets.

On the year, it isn’t exaggeratory to say Sheppard has been one of the more disappointing rookies, especially factoring in his white-hot Summer League. He’s added just 3.5 points on 30% shooting so far, averaging just under 12 minutes per game.

But there’s reason to believe Sheppard can vastly improve from here, and still needs time to cook in the Rockets’ loaded core.

The primary reason for Sheppard’s struggles could be chalked up to his athletic tools and archetype in general. He stands at just under 6-foot-2, and while his athleticism has been surprising on occasion, he’s still generally working with less than the average NBA player. The athletic jump from college basketball to the NBA is a massive one, and adjusting can take time.

Additionally, the guard position is one of the hardest spots to adjust to in the NBA, as advertised by countless rookie struggles, most recently with Scoot Henderson in Portland.

Sheppard is still a work in progress, and remains an important piece to the Houston core. But the Rockets’ may not be able to count on his impact in Year 1.

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