What Does a Successful Season Look Like for Reed Sheppard in 2025-26?

The Houston Rockets have transformed from a rebuilding team three seasons ago to one of the up-and-coming teams in 2024-25, culminating in being one of the better teams record-wise last season. After a tremendous offseason, the Rockets are now seen as one of the few genuine championship contenders in the NBA.

The Rockets traded away their first post-James Harden draft pick in Jalen Green as part of the Kevin Durant trade. They also had to send Dillon Brooks to Phoenix to complete the trade. The Rockets made it a priority to bring in another three-and-D-type player to take Brooks' place, and they did that immediately, signing Dorian Finney-Smith right after free agency began.

The Rockets even upgraded their center depth, a position of strength, last season by bringing in Clint Capela. The Rockets, however, did not bring in any additional players in the backcourt despite trading away their leading scorer and starting shooting guard, who hadn't missed a game in years.

That shows how much confidence the Rockets have in their remaining guards. Fred VanVleet, Aaron Holiday and Reed Sheppard are the Rockets' only point guards. Other than Amen Thompson, who will more than likely make the move to shooting guard, they are the only guards who will be in the rotation.

That means the Rockets' championship hopes could come down to the play of their third overall pick and second-year guard Reed Sheppard. So, after a disappointing rookie season, what would be a successful year for Sheppard this upcoming season?

What does Reed Sheppard need to do to have a better second season?

Sheppard was seen as the answer to the Rockets' shooting problems, especially from 3-point range. The Kentucky guard shot a national best 52 percent from downtown in his one season with the Wildcats. Unfortunately, that didn't transfer to most of the season as Sheppard played hesitantly and seemed to lack confidence in his shot, especially to start the season.

It goes without saying that Sheppard needs to shoot better than the 33.8 percent he hit last season. Even though 33.8 isn't terrible, it was helped by his late-season shooting that saw him on the court a lot more with the Rockets resting the majority of their starters. Shooting 35-plus percent from downtown on increased volume would go a long way to helping the Rockets become a better shooting team.

Beyond a certain number, the Rockets need Sheppard to play with confidence and become a more decisive player, especially as the backup point guard.

The Rockets will also want to limit VanVleet's minutes, as he has played over 35 minutes a game in his first two seasons with the team. That means the Rockets will also need Sheppard to become a better playmaker, as he will be the primary backup. There is a chance Thompson will slide over to point guard, but Sheppard will be relied on to orchestrate the offense and ensure the Rockets don't miss a beat once VanVleet goes to the bench.

With his increased responsibilities and playing time, averaging over four assists should be the bare minimum for Sheppard. Sheppard's points per game may not be as important as his ability to run the offense and serve as at least an average defender. Ime Udoka has established since day one that defense is what keeps you on the court.

Even though Sheppard showed reasonable anticipation at times on defense, he was also targeted by opposing teams on the offensive end. With Sheppard playing more minutes, the Rockets will need him to become a better one-on-one defender this upcoming season.

Conclusion

Sheppard may not be a starter this upcoming season, and with all the star-level players on the team, he may not even be mentioned most of the time. However, his success or lack thereof will play a significant part in the Rockets' chase for an NBA title.