Shepard, a sophomore, has the opportunity to become a key variable for the Rockets to win the championship

ESPN reporter Jeremy Woo wrote an article to analyze the ten most worthy of attention in the new season, Rockets player Shepard was ranked first. The reporter believes that compared with the contribution Durant can bring to the team, whether the Rockets can truly be competitive may depend more on the growth of young players, and Shepard has the opportunity to become a key variable for the Rockets to strive for the championship.

Rookie season highlights: Although Shepard was highly sought after a year ago, his rookie season didn't have many highlights at all - among the talented Rockets, he played in only 51 games and averaged 12 minutes per game. However, he scored 49 points in a single game in the G League, and as he gained more playing time in this aspiring team, the Rockets are still looking forward to him.

Ranking Reason: The Rockets sent Jaylen Green away in Kevin Durant's trade, one of the potential effects was to free up a lot of backcourt playtime for Shepard. At present, he is expected to win a real role after VanVleet and Amen Thompson. Compared to the contribution Durant can make to the team, whether the Rockets can truly be competitive may depend more on the growth of young players: Shepard, Amen Thompson and Jabbarry Smith Jr. will all play important roles.

Although Shepard's performance in the summer league is not outstanding, he is still worth looking forward to - he deserves to be competent for an ideal role: as a secondary ball holder, organizational point and space player, he can not only play without the ball around the team stars, but also create a more relaxed offensive environment for them. His shooting ability will be crucial when pairing with Thompson and Shin Kyung; but he also needs to be efficient on the defensive end, because the Rockets' outside height will be significantly disadvantaged when Van Vleet and Shepard are on the court at the same time. Shepard's instinct in fighting for the ball helps him play a role on the defensive end, but his deterrence against opponent's shooters is indeed limited.

Shepard has the opportunity to be a key variable for the Rockets to score a championship - in theory, he is in a perfect environment. The question is whether next season is the right time and how the Rockets may need to adjust the depth of the lineup accordingly. Simply put, we haven't really seen his full strength yet, and this is enough for the Rockets' prospects this season to put him in this position on this list.