NBA Comparison: Mark Price/Jimmer Fredette

Strengths: This year’s “analytics darling”, Sheppard’s combination of shooting efficiency, defensive metrics and overall statistical portfolio has the analytics based pundits and teams extremely enticed by him … Exceedingly efficient shooter (52.1% from three, 53.6% overall) … Extremely unselfish player that looks to get others involved … Heady player that will not force shots … Can score from all three levels, but is most comfortable scoring from mid range and out … Comfortable shooting off the catch and off the bounce … Good elevation on his jumpshot with a high release point … Very good at making outlet passes up the court, getting his team extra transition opportunities … Gets teammates easy looks with his passes … Extremely disruptive on the defensive end … Is adept at getting deflections and steals, led the SEC in steals this past year … Uses his defense to create transition run outs for himself and teammates … Blocks shots regularly, both at the rim and on the perimeter … Good at throwing the lob when help side cuts off his drives. Low ego player – will fill in the gaps for a team and was willing to come off the bench for all but 5 games his freshman year … NBA moving towards a shooting oriented league with added 3 point value plays into a player like Reed Sheppard hands … A sneaky athlete who is surprisingly more athletic and quick than he appears …

Weaknesses: Lacks the ideal size and physique for the next level … Despite his ability to make big plays on defense, often finds himself out of position or gambling for a big play … Is not the type of player to be a top option offensively for his team – works best as a glue guy/connector piece … Can struggle to get off shots against good defenses – lacks creation skills … Will occasionally force passes trying to make something happen and it will result in turnovers (averaged 2 turnovers per contest) … Scoring can be very up-and-down from game to game (7 games scoring 20 or more, 12 scoring fewer than 10) … Doesn’t have a lot of moves to breakdown defenders, relies primarily on using angles to get to his spots … May need some time to adjust to the speed and athleticism at the next level … Game isn’t very versatile – best suited playing a specific role …

Outlook: Reed Sheppard is a player that lacks the high ceiling you would generally hope for in a high draft pick … However, he also has a solid floor, as he is extremely coachable, smart, and is dedicated to playing a winning brand of basketball … He has sound fundamentals and shoots the ball extremely well … The fact that he is extremely disruptive on defense means that despite his shortcomings, he shouldn’t be a liability on the defensive end … He can play on ball or off ball on offense and should be able to find a role in the league … He exceeded expectations in college, so he could certainly develop further and do similar at the next level, but will be hurt by the fact that he will often be at a size disadvantage and always at an athleticism disadvantage at the NBA level. .. The spacing of the NBA game should enhance his offense even further, and he should play well off of elite scorers that can collapse defenses … Assuming he declares, he should benefit from a draft class that is weaker at the top than most years … He won’t make a lot of highlight plays, but his consistent threat from the outside will allow him to get minutes early in his career …

Eric Yearian 3/28/24

Notes: Measured: 6′ 1.75” barefoot, 181.6 lbs, 6′ 3.25” wingspan, 7′ 9.50” standing reach, 32.5 standing vert, 42 max vert at the 2024 NBA Draft Combine …