Isiah Reed Sheppard, #1 pick for 2024

[Big J]

I ain't taking Payton Pritchard #1 overall. I don't care how trash the draft is.

[EMG518]

#1 feels crazy but there isn't an obvious person to pick from my view.

I think some people are over thinking things as well, he has the athleticism, he plays smart, little smaller than you would like but he isn't too small, looks like he can be a good team defender and probably below avg on ball and he can shoot the lights out. How good he will be will depend on how good he gets at handling the ball and moving with it. His handle needs to get tighter but he will have way more space to operate in the NBA than in college.

Is anyone watching the playoffs, there are so many teams that can't even put forth 7 solid guys.

[Dan Z]

Is his dribbling ability really that bad?

[Big J]

You guys think he’d even be playable in a playoff series against someone like Luka? He’d be a walking target out there.

[RollingWave]

You guys think he’d even be playable in a playoff series against someone like Luka? He’d be a walking target out there.

Mike Conley is out there playing against Luka 30+ mins in the WCF, and the Wolfs aren’t exactly getting blown out, at some point people are just exaggerating the situation,



Conley is significantly smaller than Sheppard

I think Reed is likely to be an above average defensive value guard in the regular season most likely, in the playoffs sure he might get targeted in the wrong matchups but if that’s a reason to not draft someone pretty much you’d never draft a non wing-forward in the lottery or something

[OriAr]

Is his dribbling ability really that bad?

It's not but it's not as good as Curry's so people naturally think it's garbage.
There is no denying that improving the handling will help him with self creation in the NBA, but people completely overexaggerate how supposedly bad it is.

[JMAC3]

You guys think he’d even be playable in a playoff series against someone like Luka? He’d be a walking target out there.

Mike Conley is out there playing against Luka 30+ mins in the WCF, and the Wolfs aren’t exactly getting blown out, at some point people are just exaggerating the situation,



Conley is significantly smaller than Sheppard

I think Reed is likely to be an above average defensive value guard in the regular season most likely, in the playoffs sure he might get targeted in the wrong matchups but if that’s a reason to not draft someone pretty much you’d never draft a non wing-forward in the lottery or something

Mike Conley has a 6-6 wingspan and 17 seasons of experience. Also far quicker even to this day then Sheppard.

[bucknut]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

[Big J]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

Quick hands and jumping ain’t gonna help him when 6’8 275 lb Luka bodies him into the basket. We’ll see how often Boston puts Payton Pritchard on the floor when Luka is out there.

[JMAC3]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

You are handicapping your team the moment you take him due to his size and athleticism. I am not saying he can't make it work but it is the Trae Young dilemma of if you can avoid having a small pg then you should even if the guy turns out to be good. And I think most of us would agree the payoff with Reed is nowhere near what Trae is.

Reed is going to be a disadvantage on a nightly basis if he is a starting pg. Which starting PGs in the NBA do you think he can guard well? It a lot closer to 5 than 15.. which isn't a great start for a guy that profiles to be a sub 15 ppg scorer.

[bucknut]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

You are handicapping your team the moment you take him due to his size and athleticism. I am not saying he can't make it work but it is the Trae Young dilemma of if you can avoid having a small pg then you should even if the guy turns out to be good. And I think most of us would agree the payoff with Reed is nowhere near what Trae is.

Reed is going to be a disadvantage on a nightly basis if he is a starting pg. Which starting PGs in the NBA do you think he can guard well? It a lot closer to 5 than 15.. which isn't a great start for a guy that profiles to be a sub 15 ppg scorer.

As far as Reeds iso 1 v 1 man on man defense; he doesn't profile as an aaron craft, but is he worse then curry ? idn......team defense, including transition steals off deflections will however be ELITE. Reed could be a 2 steal per game guy.

I think Reed will be the new age point guard going forward - he doesn't "feel" like a pointguard in the traditional sense because why ? .... because he doesn't want to pound the ball into the floor. most point guards today dominate the ball, even great passers like nash or doncic, they want to first pound rocks for 12 seconds

The shephard comps are awful - kirk hinrich ? not eve a comparison as a passer.

He can have a jokic like impact on his team offensively. His style turns your offense into spurs free flowing, synergy.

Reed has a little kyle anderson in him, a little ginobili in him, .......IMO as a physical prospect in the traditional sense and way nba is played - he is a 6th man or roleplayer in nba

AS a new age point that can completely change the flow of an offensive system - i think he is #1 overall pick. He is an elite passer and ball mover the likes the nba game isn't used to seeing.

[JonHeist]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

Quick hands and jumping ain’t gonna help him when 6’8 275 lb Luka bodies him into the basket. We’ll see how often Boston puts Payton Pritchard on the floor when Luka is out there.

If your reason for not liking a prospect is "that they'd have a hard time guarding Luka Doncic" you must hate every player in this draft

[bucknut]

Imo reed has spurs written all over him.

Why did they draft Blake Wesley ? Shepard is the antithesis of Blake Wesley.

[bucknut]

just a few more thoughts - calipari guys have way more upside at nba.....booker, murray, etc

Calipari did not feature sheppard like he should have. He came off bench most of year - was not the dominant point. I think his assists numbers would of been way up if he was.

.....His on ball iso scoring ability isn't special, but it's more than enough imo.....a guy like fred van fleet was never as good a scorer as sheppard. Sheppard may not have insane step back spacing, but he is constantly putting pressure on a defense. He plays with velocity - ability to get downhill in the lane, has a good pull up, and a deadly three. He makes a move and boom its there or he's passing -

Think of a kyle anderson who can shoot deadly threes and plays at a quick pace and processing then slow tempo

[clyde21]

just a few more thoughts - calipari guys have way more upside at nba.....booker, murray, etc

eh, for every Murray or Booker or Maxey you get a TyTy or Khalil Whitney or or Brandon Boston.

[Dan Z]

Is his dribbling ability really that bad?

It's not but it's not as good as Curry's so people naturally think it's garbage.
There is no denying that improving the handling will help him with self creation in the NBA, but people completely overexaggerate how supposedly bad it is.

Thank you. That was my impression but I haven't watched enough footage of Reed so I asked the question.

I also don't think dribbling needs to be fancy...the main thing is protect the ball and to be able to move around on the court without it being a problem.

[JMAC3]

just a few more thoughts - calipari guys have way more upside at nba.....booker, murray, etc

Calipari did not feature sheppard like he should have. He came off bench most of year - was not the dominant point. I think his assists numbers would of been way up if he was.

.....His on ball iso scoring ability isn't special, but it's more than enough imo.....a guy like fred van fleet was never as good a scorer as sheppard. Sheppard may not have insane step back spacing, but he is constantly putting pressure on a defense. He plays with velocity - ability to get downhill in the lane, has a good pull up, and a deadly three. He makes a move and boom its there or he's passing -

Think of a kyle anderson who can shoot deadly threes and plays at a quick pace and processing then slow tempo

He doesn't get to the rim, he doesn't draw fouls and he can't even create his own shot.
Him shooting 4.4 3s per game making 52% makes no sense unless he just wasn't able to get free to shoot.

If he can't get to the rim in the pros he won't average a lot of assists, you have to be able to draw 2 defenders or be a threat to score. I haven't seen anything in Reeds game other than being a really good shooter when he is open that is going to scare defenses in the pros.

[Big J]

just a few more thoughts - calipari guys have way more upside at nba.....booker, murray, etc

Calipari did not feature sheppard like he should have. He came off bench most of year - was not the dominant point. I think his assists numbers would of been way up if he was.

.....His on ball iso scoring ability isn't special, but it's more than enough imo.....a guy like fred van fleet was never as good a scorer as sheppard. Sheppard may not have insane step back spacing, but he is constantly putting pressure on a defense. He plays with velocity - ability to get downhill in the lane, has a good pull up, and a deadly three. He makes a move and boom its there or he's passing -

Think of a kyle anderson who can shoot deadly threes and plays at a quick pace and processing then slow tempo

A 6'0 Kyle Anderson is likely playing for Beşiktaş or Kolossos Rodou. Not an NBA team.

[Big J]

Reed is one of the best shot blockers in the draft as a guard. ELITE quick hands. And elite vertical to makeup for his height.

His biggest attribute is as a connector and passer. Reed doesn't over dribble. He doesn't excessively dance. He makes quick passes....gets defense to slightly move and attacks.

Reed looks like Bob Knight and popovichs son

I like him for those reasons number 1. Comparing him to buddy hield lol lol

Quick hands and jumping ain’t gonna help him when 6’8 275 lb Luka bodies him into the basket. We’ll see how often Boston puts Payton Pritchard on the floor when Luka is out there.

If your reason for not liking a prospect is "that they'd have a hard time guarding Luka Doncic" you must hate every player in this draft

There is a big difference between having a hard time guarding Luka, and being unplayable against him.

[Lefty20]

Imo reed has spurs written all over him.

Why did they draft Blake Wesley ? Shepard is the antithesis of Blake Wesley.

We should be so lucky.

Imma be shocked if Rockets end up passing on him.

And pissed if the Spurs decide to as well.