Sheppard will not play in Sunday's Summer League finale against the Trail Blazers, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Sheppard will be shut down for the Rockets' final Summer League game, as the team is out of contention. The third overall pick will now shift his focus to getting ready for the upcoming season, where he'll have an uphill battle for significant playing time.
Sheppard finished with 15 points (6-17 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 3-3 FT), four rebounds, two assists and three steals in 36 minutes during Monday's 87-73 Summer League loss to the Pistons.
Sheppard took a step back Monday after posting a strong final line Sunday, as he converted on 35.3 percent of his tries from the field and committed four turnovers in an ugly loss. This is part of the learning process for the young guard, who will almost certainly have plenty of ups and downs once the regular season begins.
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Rockets' Reed Sheppard: Impresses in SL Sunday
Rotowire
Sheppard went for 22 points (9-15 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 3-4 FT), seven assists, six rebounds, five steals and a block across 32 minutes during Sunday's 109-91 victory over the Wizards at Summer League.
Sheppard stuffed the stat sheet Sunday, recording a game-high seven assists and tying a game-high five steals. The third overall pick was also effective creating in the midrange, finding shots for himself and teammates. Sheppard has been impressive to kick off Summer League, averaging 22.5 points, 6.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 blocks in 31.0 minutes per game across two appearances.
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Rockets' Reed Sheppard: Team-high 23 points in win Friday
Rotowire
Sheppard produced 23 points (9-17 FG, 4-6 3Pt, 1-2 FT), five assists, four rebounds, three blocks and one steal across 30 minutes in Friday's 99-80 win over the Lakers in the NBA 2K25 Summer League.
Sheppard opened his Summer League play with an extremely productive outing, stuffing the stat sheet and hitting a team-high four three-pointers. The No. 3 overall pick was a lights-out shooter in one season with Kentucky, during which he averaged 12.5 points, 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals while shooting 52.1 percent from deep. The 20-year-old also impressed on defense Friday, but his 6-foot-2 frame could limit what he can do on that side of the ball against NBA competition.
Sheppard was selected with the third overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Rockets.
Sheppard should add a jolt of elite perimeter shooting to the Rockets while sharing reserve playmaking responsibilities with Amen Thompson. It's easy to envision Sheppard running two-man action with Alperen Sengun, or Sengun finding Sheppard for open looks coming off a variety of off-ball screens. The guard out of Kentucky is also a smart and active defender, though his 6-foot-2 frame will limit his upside on that side of the ball.
