Second-year Philadelphia 76ers big man Paul Reed had himself an interesting rookie season. He did not play much at the big level as Philadelphia was a team that featured a lot of veterans, but he was able to make an impact in the G League where he ended up winning MVP.
As he prepares for his second season in the league, Reed will actually get some summer league action to develop a bit more which is something he got robbed of from his rookie season. The energetic big man came up with some big plays in Monday’s summer league win over the Dallas Mavericks that showed off some potential.
Reed finished with nine points, eight rebounds, three steals, and four blocks. The defensive numbers are encouraging as that is something that he has been wanting to work on for the future.
“One area of my game I’ve been working on a lot is my shooting ability, but then another one was my defense,” Reed explained. “I’ve been doing a lot of defensive drills. Like practicing guarding 3s, 4s, 2s, and guards, mostly like perimeter players. Just practicing and getting better at being able to get over screens, calling out coverages, gaining the right position on defense.”
Reed may stand at 6-foot-9, but he has the agility and the quickness to be able to keep up with some of the perimeter players in the league. At that point, it will just come down to being able to put the correct work in and continue to grow as a player.
As for Philadelphia as a team, the goal is to win out in summer league. So while Reed and the others will want to work on their games, the overall goal is to be able to win out in Las Vegas with the talent they have out there.
“The number one goal is to win the championship,” Reed continued. “Anything as far as personal, I don’t want to put my personal goals above the team goals. So I’m trying to stay within the team goals.”
Along with Reed, Philadelphia also has second-year guards Tyrese Maxey and Isaiah Joe out there as well. Maxey had 21 points, five rebounds, and four steals and he was able to make life easy for Reed and the rest of the roster.
“Playing with a guy like Maxey, you don’t really have to do too much,” Reed smiled. “He’s gonna take care of a lot. He’s so elite and he’s getting better at passing. It’s fun to play with him.”
Philadelphia will take on the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday to continue their summer league schedule. The top two teams at the end of the regular schedule will move on to play for the summer league title.
“The number one goal is to win the championship,” Reed finished. “I don’t think any team should beat us. So that’s the number one goal.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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