Reed Sheppard's phenomenal play as a freshman continues to spark the interest by many basketball analysts. Just about a month ago now, Krysten Peek, an NBA Draft analyst for Yahoo Sports, released her 2024 NBA Mock Draft and it included Reed Sheppard going in the top-15 at number eleven to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Just recently, CBS' own Gary Parrish had this to say about the Kentucky guard.
"Nobody, and I mean nobody, had Sheppard projected this high or even as a lottery pick in the preseason. And, obviously, this is really high. But in a draft that’s been labeled 'weak', relatively speaking for at least a year now, why not make a bet on a 6-3 guard who can dribble, pass, shoot, and guard his position."
He continued with, "As The Athletic’s Kyle Tucker recently pointed out, as of Feb. 7, Sheppard was the only player in College Basketball who had recorded 90-plus assists, made 50-plus 3-pointers, created 50-plus steals, and committed less than 40 turnovers on the season. He’s just a basketball player, plain and simple. And a super-impressive one even if he has mostly been coming off of Kentucky’s bench this season."
Reed has definitely been a pleasant surprise and I will be the first to admit it. I never would have dreamed that he would have come in and performed at this level immediately as a freshman. I knew that he had the skillset and he definitely had the genes from both his mother Stacey and his father Jeff, but I thought it might take him a couple of seasons to transition from high school to college. He is definitely proving all of us wrong and is dominating just like he did in the 13th Region while he was at North Laurel.
With all that being said, Gary Parrish placed Reed Sheppard inside the top-5 in his 2024 NBA Mock Draft at the number two overall spot going to the San Antonio Spurs.
The fact that we are mentioning Reed Sheppard in the top-five of the NBA Draft is a little surreal, but should we be that surprised? His play off the bench this season has been extraordinary and something you won't see again in quite some time I'm afraid. He is another generational type of talent that Kentucky fans need to enjoy while he is here because if his draft stock continues like it is, there is a slim-to-none chance that Big Blue Nation gets a sophomore season out of Reed.