Executive's comparison for Rockets' Reed Sheppard could spell disaster for future

The Houston Rockets want stardom for Reed Sheppard. So the fact that one of their executives recently compared him to Payton Pritchard is troubling.

That's not to disrespect Pritchard. He's a good NBA player. Pritchard's elite three-point shooting and secondary ball-handling make him the type of player any NBA team would like to roster.

They wouldn't necessarily select him with the third overall pick. That's the trouble here. Sure, Pritchard is good:

The Rockets need Sheppard to be better.

Rockets' Reed Sheppard has lofty expectations

Let's take a closer look at Pritchard.

In 2024-25, he averaged 14.3 points and 3.5 assists per game with a Box Plus/Minus (BPM) of 3.5. Pritchard shot 40.7% on 7.8 three-pointers per game.

That's not bad. The BPM is strong for a guard. If Sheppard hit that mark, it would be satisfactory. Moreover, 40.7% accuracy on such a high volume of triples is strong. In some respects, this would be an acceptable statistical profile for Sheppard.

Yet, it wouldn't quite be enough, would it? The 3.5 assists per game stand out. That's a mark that's indicative of a secondary option. The Rockets would like close to double that amount of dimes per game from Sheppard in his prime.

Can he give them that?

Rockets' Reed Sheppard can surpass Pritchard

The primary basis for this comparison is likely height. Sheppard is listed as 6'2", and Pritchard is 6'1". They're both small guards who want to do the bulk of their damage from long range.

Pritchard's diminutive size likely accounts for his modest 28.9 minutes per game in 2025-26. He can easily be targeted on defense. That's where Sheppard needs to differentiate himself.

In theory, that's possible. Even as a rookie, Sheppard averaged 1.9 steals and 0,9 blocks per 75 possessions. Pritchard averaged 1.2 steals and 0.2 blocks per the same measure. This is part of what made Sheppard a special prospect: It wasn't just the otherworldly shooting, but the defensive playmaking that came with it.

Yet, defensive playmaking is not point of attack prevention. Sheppard can rack up steals and blocks, but that won't stop elite guards from scoring at will. He needs to be a more well-rounded defender to stay on the floor.

Hopefully, he can learn from Fred VanVleet. He's managed to play high-level defense for years despite being the shortest of these three guards. VanVleet's grit and focus are vital to his approach. Ideally, he'll bestow those traits onto Sheppard:

That could help him surpass Payton Pritchard.