The Rockets Have A Huge Problem…
Before the season even starts, the Houston Rockets face a setback with an ACL injury to Fred VanVleet. This has huge implications for the NBA and Kevin Durant, Reed Sheppard, and more.
#rockets #houstonrockets #nba
@Houston Rockets
20 Comments
Calling a Lakers AR trade to Houston
Why stress, just play amen Thompson at PG. he was drafted as a point guard and i think playing at guard will make him a allstar this year
How you get injured on your day off, Craig?
Several ACL tears this year. We'll see if other players rise to the challenge and fill the spot Van Vleet left.
Point KD?
Texas will be tough in general, but only SA is a real contender. Houston and Dallas simply cannot stack up against what OKC and Den have going.
I had Sheppard on my fantasy list for interesting already and now? He could have a great season.
What do you guys think?
im a raptors fan and i never cared about how anyone pronounced Fred's last name(unless you were simply just not trying, like its not that hard to pronounce) but literally everyone said 'fleet'. like cmon, its not a big deal 😭
Did Houston just bet the season on “KD + giants” with no real PG? Without FVV’s brain running the show, Amen-at-point and Reed thrown to the wolves feels like chaos—title push or trainwreck? 🤯🔥
As a Mavs fan, just one question: so, who's gonna be better in the next season: DLo or this Reed Shepard? And – Dallas or Houston?
This is it for Reed . Prove yourself what you can do
I love how eloquent your speech is ngl, its really satisfying being able to watch a video with so much information packed into such a concise block of time 🙂
I think the Rockets should go with a simple but effective offense. Lots of isos, lots of pick and rolls, give it inside for post ups, etc. They have enough talent to get away with that provided their defense is stellar. If they do a simple offense, Amen can handle it.
So I think people might be too quick to judge this situation. Yes, this is obviously bad news. But historically, there used to be this concept of addition by subtraction where teams sometimes get better from losing one of their stars. Some examples are the Hawks losing Joe Johnson, the Celtics losing Kyrie, the Nuggets losing Melo, the Warriors losing Monta Ellis, etc. Also, some teams have been able to quickly develop their younger players out of necessity after trading away their predecessor. We saw that when Memphis moved on from Conley to make way for Ja. When the Wizards let Gilbert Arenas go to give John Wall the keys, the term addition by subtraction was used. But probably the most analogous to the Rockets was the Bulls letting Kirk Hinrich go, which gave D-Rose his MVP season.
Fred is obviously a boon for the Rockets on the court, but he was also a crutch for them. He provided leadership and consistency when they’re on cold streaks. But technically speaking, he was the weakest starter last season. He was less efficient than Jalen. If he took no shots, the Rockets’ scoring efficiency would actually go up significantly if others took those shots. And Fred knew that, which is why the Rockets decided he was going to focus on facilitating this year. And it just so happens that facilitating is the only NBA-ready skill that Reed has. So what do they have to lose by putting Reed in that role now? Really, everything he did on the court can actually be replaced if his injury forces Amen and Reed to peak early because both of them clearly have a higher ceiling than Fred. KD can fill the scoring consistency role much better than Fred. That’s a non-issue. If anything it’s an improvement. Reed can fill the floor spacing role, but it’ll be important for him to limit his shots. He’s not there yet as a shooter and needs to only take what he can get, just like Fred planned to do. Amen can fill the on-court leadership role. He is smart and vocal, his teammates like him, and there’s no reason why Fred can’t travel with the team too and lead from the bench.
The only thing that they can’t replace in my opinion is Fred’s defense (and I guess his shooting if Reed continues to shoot 35/33 splits). People like to say Reed is taller but that’s misunderstanding how defense works. Reed is 6’2” with a 6’3” wingspan. Fred is 6’0” with a 6’9” wingspan. See the difference now? Fred is a lockdown defender. His wingspan lets him play much bigger than his size. Reed is not a bad defender necessarily, but he is a gambler. He relies on timing because he doesn’t have the length to disrupt shots or cover wide. But if there’s one coach who can bring out the best defense in Reed, it’s Udoka. That said, Udoka’s tendency is more to simply bench Reed if he can’t play defense the way he wants. I can see him doing that. But who knows maybe Aaron Holiday is the one who steps up for Fred. That wouldn’t be crazy. Holiday is a good passer. He can space the floor out to the 3. And he’s 6’1” with a 6’6” wingspan which is a closer build to Fred. He is Jrue’s brother after all and Jrue would be the perfect replacement for Fred on this team.
It could be that the Rockets didn't add backcourt help by reason that they know more about Sheppard than the rest of us know.
BEN SIMMONS TO REPLACE VAN VLEET
Ben Simmons will save the Rockets!
Ben Simmons incoming
Rockets the same with or without Fred 🤣
Amen starting PG, and Alepern point center/forward . From bench Reed and Aaron on PG. Also KD likes iso, so we will him with ball in his hands