The Houston Rockets faced two unfortunate pieces of news ahead of their game against the Dallas Mavericks. The first was the suspension of their backup point guard, Amon Thompson, for two games due to a conflict in the previous match. This was his first game out, and he would also miss the next home game against the Boston Celtics. To make matters worse, the Rockets' forward, Ethan, has been out of action due to injury for several consecutive games. Last season, Ethan only played 20 games, which was one of the main reasons the Rockets failed to enter the playoffs.
It seems that injuries have once again found the 23-year-old iron-blooded forward, Ethan. As part of the Rockets' famous "Door God Combination" and best defensive duo, it is clear that with both Amon Thompson and Tari Ethan unavailable, some bench players were given the opportunity to play. For example, in the game against the Mavericks, the Rockets' forward, Whitmore, scored an impressive 18 points in 24 minutes, catching everyone's attention. Another guard, Aaron Holiday, also received 15 minutes of playing time, scoring 4 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist in the game, with a performance that could be considered average.
Another veteran, Tate, scored 3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal in 15 minutes, showing a very comprehensive performance. Most importantly, outside of Ethan and Amon Thompson, Tate is the first choice for the Rockets' bench forwards. Therefore, although the 28-year-old Tate is known as the most likely player to be traded by the Rockets, from the current situation, the Rockets' lineup indeed cannot do without him. Especially when Ethan may be out for a long time due to injury, Tate's importance becomes fully evident.
Although the Rockets won big in this game, there is one player who might not be too happy, and that is the 20-year-old rookie, Shepherd. This season, Shepherd has indeed occupied a rotation spot for a long time within the Rockets, and he even frequently plays the role of the second point guard for the Rockets. However, the problem lies in the fact that the young Shepherd, who was an ace shooter during his college days, has had a mediocre performance in the NBA this season.
In the previous game where the Rockets lost to the Heat, Shepherd was benched. In this game where the Rockets defeated the Mavericks, Udoka gave opportunities to Tate, Holiday, and even Whitmore, but Shepherd did not receive even a minute of playing time. He was benched for the second consecutive game by Udoka, which was also the fourth time this season that Shepherd was benched by the Rockets and unable to participate in the game. It can be said that Aaron Holiday, Tate, and Whitmore's performance and ability to perform in the game far surpassed Shepherd.
Although Shepherd averaged nearly 12 minutes of playing time this season, he could only contribute 3.4 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game, with a three-point shooting percentage of only 28%. No matter how you look at it, he doesn't seem like a qualified backcourt rotation player. Therefore, Udoka's decision to abandon Shepherd is reasonable. Even with the absence of the Rockets' dual core and Udoka leading a nine-man squad into battle against the Mavericks, he still chose not to give Shepherd any playing opportunities.
It's not an exaggeration to say that Shepherd has now been abandoned by the Rockets. Although he has not yet been demoted to the developmental league's Venom team, it will likely be quite difficult for this 20-year-old rookie to return to the rotation this season.