Coach Ime Udoka added some life to the Rockets‘ offense on Friday by inserting second-year guard Reed Sheppard into the starting lineup, Varun Shankar of The Houston Chronicle writes in a subscriber-only story. It was Sheppard’s 11th start of the season, but his first when Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason were both healthy.
The immediate results were promising as Houston scored 117 points while ending Atlanta’s 11-game winning streak. Sheppard contributed 14 points, four rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes while shooting 4-of-7 from three-point range.
“Just another threat outside the three-point line, somebody that can create for us and himself,” Kevin Durant said of the decision to put Sheppard in the starting five. “All the great basketball teams got multiple guys that create for themselves in others… we got five guys that can put the ball on the floor, make a play, knock down the shot, so we got to utilize that.”
Speaking to reporters after the game, Udoka said he wanted to experiment with Sheppard as a starter before the postseason to see how effective it would be. He plans to evaluate the move over the next few games, but didn’t commit to keeping Sheppard as a starter for the rest of the regular season.
“Obviously Reed has taken a nice step — jump — lately,” Udoka said. “Wanted to have more spacers out there… have different guys who can handle… get a last look at something before the playoffs.”
There’s more from Houston:
- Sheppard’s promotion meant Eason, who has been slumping with his shot lately, was back in a sixth-man role, Shankar adds. He had missed 23 straight three-point attempts before sinking one in the third quarter on Friday. Asked about the advice he gave to Eason during his shooting struggles, Smith responded, “You didn’t get to the league knocking down three-point shots. Impact the game how you impact the game. The other stuff gonna come naturally.”
- Durant, who’s now 25 points behind Michael Jordan for fifth place on the career scoring list, talked to William Guillory of The Athletic about the influence that Jordan had on his career. “Jordan has always been my inspiration. There’s a reason why I wanted to be able to knock down those shots,” Durant said. “He was always unstoppable, but when he became a midrange maestro, you never knew how he would attack you. You never knew what MJ was going to do. He scared defenders every night, and I wanted to put that same kind of fear in the defender who’s guarding me.”
- Alperen Sengun made his second All-Star appearance this year, but his overall season has been uneven, Shankar states in a video analysis of the 23-year-old center. Sengun was listed as questionable for tonight’s game against Miami due to back tightness, but Udoka confirmed that he’ll be able to play, according to Guillory (Twitter link).