Philadelphia 76ers rookie Paul Reed should continue to add to his offensive game in his rookie season.
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This is a new series we are starting at Sixers Wire where we will be looking at the 17 players that comprise the Philadelphia 76ers roster — 15 under contract and the two players on two-way deals — and give them each three goals for the 2020-21 season.
On Tuesday, we move on to the other two-way contract player on the roster, rookie Paul Reed. The Sixers will keep the 58th overall pick in the 2020 draft on a two-way deal and he will have to use his rookie season as a learning experience and a developmental year.
For the season, his three goals should be:
Add to his offensive game
At the moment, Reed’s offensive game is known as a rim running big man who uses his athleticism as a way to score his points. He averaged 15.1 points and 10.7 rebounds in his junior season at DePaul which are good numbers, be if he is to have a long career in the NBA, he will have to add more to his game.
The good thing is, he is only 21-years old and he began expanding his range a bit in college. He shot 1.8 triples per game and he shot 30.8% from deep. If he can continue to add to that aspect of his game and he can continue to grow on offense, then he can be a rotational player for a long time in this league. Being on a two-way deal, he should be able to get the necessary playing time down with the team’s G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats.
Reed is on a team that has a few veterans he can turn to. Guys like Joel Embiid and Dwight Howard have experienced a lot of success in the NBA and those two can take Reed under their wing and offer any advice to him that he needs to be successful. He has a defensive background and both Embiid and Howard happen to be defensive stalwarts so he should lean on them for any advice and soak up as much as he can for his future.
Push Tony Bradley
As of right now, Tony Bradley is the third center on this roster behind the aforementioned Embiid and Howard. Reed should set his sights on Bradley and continue to push him in training camp and use these coming weeks as an opportunity to get better and show off his stuff.
Reed won’t take Bradley’s spot right away, but he has as good a chance as Bradley to eventually earn a rotation spot. Bradley has had a tough time earning minutes at this level and both of these young men should be putting their best foot forward once camp opens up on Tuesday. [lawrence-related id=39652,39648,39643]
Philadelphia 76ers rookie Paul Reed wants to show everybody that he can also shot the ball from deep.
The Philadelphia 76ers have had a busy offseason as they continue to reshape the roster around stars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. The focus has been creating a roster that can shoot the ball, handle the ball, and get out and run in transition.
While there have been bigger names that will help with that goal, there is one name that should factor into this team’s plans at some point. That would be rookie Paul Reed who the team believes can be a backup to Joel Embiid in the near future.
Reed was selected 58th overall in the 2020 NBA draft and the hope is that he can provide some good bench play in the future as a big who can run the floor. However, he also wants to prove to everybody that he can shoot the ball as well.
In terms of Reed’s rookie season, he will sign a two-way deal which means he will most likely be ticketed for the G League whenever they can figure out their season.
Paul Reed, the 58th pick in the 2020 draft, is signing a two-way contract with the #sixers, per source.
The Sixers are continuing to work out their roster for this season and the future, but it appears that Reed will certainly be a part of whatever the team wants to accomplish. [lawrence-related id=39585,39582,39578]
The Philadelphia 76ers believe that Paul Reed can be a backup big man to Joel Embiid.
The Philadelphia 76ers had themselves a big night on Wednesday. They made some big moves in order to acquire some shooting around their star duo of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, they added some young players, and they now believe they have a backup big man.
With the team getting set to trade Al Horford to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team needs somebody to fill his role and his minutes. They selected Paul Reed at 58 overall out of DePaul in the draft and he is a guy that the team feels is a steal at this spot in the draft.
Despite being the 58th pick in this draft, the team believes he can play right away and he can find a spot as a backup big man behind Joel Embiid.
“Paul Reed is super underrated in our minds,” said team president Daryl Morey. “Especially with the Al Horford move, there’s a path there. He can also guard multiple positions with Joel, for the 13 to 15 minutes he’s off the floor, Paul Reed’s a guy who can guard multiple. We can play a dynamic, uptempo, shooting, good fit with Ben (Simmons).”
Reed is coming off a solid junior season at DePaul where he averaged 15.1 points, 10.7 rebounds, and he blocked 2.6 shots per game. He is a guy who can run like a deer and it is why Morey thinks he can fit in well with Simmons on the floor when Embiid needs a break.
“Absolutely,” exclaimed Reed. “I think that’s my game. Running the floor like a deer. Up and down, up and down, up and down, up-tempo, that’s exactly my game.”
A lot of mocks had Reed going much higher than 58. Some did not have him even making it to the second round, but alas, here he is in Philadelphia at 58, and now is his time to show the world he is much better than his draft position.
“I thought about it and I don’t remember what could’ve made me fall that late, but I’m grateful and excited that Philly took a chance on me,” he explained. “As far as a chip on my shoulder, I feel like every team that passed up on me, they’re going to regret that decision so I’m excited to go out and earn my minutes and show teams that they really missed out on a good player.”
At the end of the day, Morey does want to express caution with any high expectations. The reality is, Reed is still a rookie and a lot of these guys still need development before they become something real.
“Obviously, they’re all rookies and the reality is most rookies take more than a year to even contribute, but obviously Ben and Joel are going to be here for a long time and we feel like all the guys we took are very good fits for those guys,” Morey finished with. [lawrence-related id=39304,39301,39276]
The Philadelphia 76ers select Paul Reed with the 58th pick in the draft.
The Philadelphia 76ers have had a very busy draft night as they made two huge trades including sending Al Horford to the Oklahoma City Thunder. They also acquired sharpshooter Seth Curry from the Dallas Mavericks on the night.
They then added some rookies in Tyrese Maxey at 21 in Round 1 before selecting Isaiah Joe at 49. With their final pick in the draft, the Sixers selected a big man who can provide some production off the bench.
The Sixers selected DePaul’s Paul Reed with the 58th pick in the draft. He averaged 15.1 points and 10.7 rebounds while blocking 2.6 shots per game as well. He has the potential to be a rotational piece as a backup big man in Philadelphia’s rotation.
#Sixers draft DePaul F Paul Reed with the 58th pick
The big addition here is Reed’s ability to block shots. Of course, Philadelphia has Joel Embiid who is one of the fearsome rim protectors in the league, but they needed some of that on the bench. This has been a successful draft for Daryl Morey and the team. [lawrence-related id=39253,39250,39247]
After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.
After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.
Originally scheduled for June, the ongoing pandemic pushed the big night back by five months. While this may cause some teams to overthink their decisions, it gave analysts plenty of time to study all of the top prospects eligible in this class.
This year, players had to participate in a mostly virtual pre-draft process. On the bright side, this meant that teams had the opportunity to interview more candidates than ever before.
However, the number of in-person visits were incredibly limited due to the restrictive parameters set by the league. Similarly, the NBA draft combine was conducted without the typical scrimmages where players can separate themselves from the others with impressive on-court performances.
Overall, the players that stood out in this pre-draft process had a different path to recognition than any other year. College basketball players did not have the opportunity to showcase themselves during March Madness. The nation’s top seniors did not get to participate in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament.
As such, executives will rely mostly on the existing game footage as well as the intel they gathered during their conversations with the prospects. We also depended on similar strategies, getting access to one-on-one interviews with more than three dozen prospects and exchanging our thoughts with various scouts across the league.
This helped us put together our final big board, looking at the Top 100 players ranked on their potential to make a difference for teams in the NBA.
Relevant statistics were pulled from Synergy Sports Tech, Bart-Torvik, KenPom, Open Look Analytics and RealGM. Note that the age listed for each player references how old they will be on the night of the draft.
This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.
Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.
The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.
This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.
Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.
The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.
The Boston Celtics have reportedly interviewed DePaul big man Paul Reed, an athletic, defensive-minded big man projected in the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft.
The Boston Celtics are staying very busy on the NBA Draft front according to Fortune’s Chris Grenham, having interviewed DePaul big man Paul Reed.
Currently projected around the middle of the second round where the Celtics currently control the No. 47 overall pick owed them by the Brooklyn Nets, the athletic, skilled big man is an intriguing option should he slide far enough for Boston to take him.
His defense in particular stands out, with Reed likely to steal your lunch if you don’t protect the ball, and send it into the stands if he can get his mitts on it near the rim, with 2.9 blocks per game in his final season with DePaul.
DePaul’s Paul Reed has met with the Celtics, according to a source.
Reed is an athletic big who can be a real disruptor on the defensive end. Has great value as a second-rounder.
His clunky jumper needs work, but the fundamentals are in place, and the biggest knocks against him are his size (at 6-foot-9 he’s a little small for a big man) and age at 21 years old.
His handles need improvement, and a better passing game could unlock more of his game as a smaller big man as well, but most of his warts are problems that should be solvable at the next level so long as the desire to put in the work is there.
All that considered, he’s got a high floor as a rotation player who could become a starter if he improves his offensive range and bulks up a little more — definitely worth a shot if Boston still has a pick in his range.
DePaul Blue Demons forward Paul Reed, who declared early entry for the 2020 NBA Draft, is considered one of the top players at his position.
DePaul Blue Demons forward Paul Reed, who declared early entry for the 2020 NBA draft, is considered one of the top players at his position.
Reed, who is 6-foot-9, won the Big East’s Most Improved Player in 2019 and then was honored as second-team All-Big East in 2019-20. He averaged 15.1 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.9 steals per game as a junior.
The prospect, who ranks No. 37 overall on our most recent aggregate mock draft, recently caught up with HoopsHype.
Note: This transcription has been very minorly edited for clarity.
What have you been doing to keep busy during the quarantine?
Paul Reed: I was mad when the season ended. But I’ve just been working and preparing myself for the next season. So I’ve just been working out. Otherwise, just doing school work and hanging out with my family.
You got so much during each season at DePaul. What are some things you took away from your experience of playing college basketball?
PR: Thinking back to my time at DePaul, it taught me how to play without the ball in my hands and having plays run for me. I just learned how to hoop with plays, getting it out of the muscle, for real. That is one of my biggest takeaways.
What are some of your favorite memories from playing college basketball?
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
PR: I loved hanging out with my teammates, getting wins. I loved getting wins, to be honest, and how it made us feel. Whenever we won, that was the best. I loved the Butler game because, before that, I went to my coach’s office and told him plays that we should run. He listened to me. We did them and it worked. I missed only one shot and ended up with a double-double.
You are a double-double machine! How much is that part of your identity as a player?
PR: That’s a given. I expect myself to get a double-double every time I play or step on the court. That’s just a part of my game. That’s what you are going to get out of me, at least ten points and ten rebounds. Then, some steals and some blocks. That’s just part of my game.
I love the way that you can record a steal or block on defense and then turn that into a transition bucket.
PR: In high school, I used to bring the ball up a lot. I got the rebound and then brought it up myself. I’m not where I want to be at yet. Last season, I would lose the ball sometimes after I would get a steal or a block. That’s what I’ve been working on this offseason, my handles. I want to make sure they are nice and tight so I don’t make those same errors again. But that is part of my game. I’m an all-around player. I feel like I can do it all. If I get a steal, I can go coast-to-coast and make something happen. That’s just part of me.
Tell me about your mentality as a shot-blocker, rim protector as well as recording defensive rebounds.
PR: It’s just instincts, playing with a motor. I’m always trying to stay active. For my team, I’m always the last line of defense. That is my mindset. It’s up to me to not let the other team score. Defensive rebounds are also extremely important because if I don’t get the rebound, most likely the other team will. Then they will get another chance to score. We need defensive rebounds. It’s super important. I’m that guy that’s going to get them.
I think you are a fantastic finisher near the rim on offense, too, recording 32 dunks. How do you think that will translate to the next level?
Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
PR: At the next level, I think that because the court is more spaced out, I can actually showcase my ability to dribble the ball and make moves. I couldn’t really showcase that at DePaul because that wasn’t my role. I had to box my game in. But in the NBA, once I’m on the court and I have someone in front of me, I’ll be able to go around them.
You averaged 1.8 shot attempts from beyond the arc as a junior, which was by far the most in your collegiate career. Where is your confidence right now in your jump shot?
PR: I can shoot the ball pretty well. My midrange is knockdown and my three-pointer is getting knockdown. I think I’m going to be able to come in and knock down open shots, easily. If there is a dude in my face, I feel like I’m still going to be able to knock a shot down. I’ve been working on it every day. That’s a plus about my game. I showcased that ability at DePaul, being able to knock down shots.
How would you describe what your role will look like in the NBA?
PR: I expect to be an energy guy on offense. I can be a cutter and slasher. If you pass it to me and I’m open, I’m going to shoot it. I’m going to be an all-around type player, getting offensive rebounds. Defensively, I think that I’m going to be the person who is guarding the best player most of the time. I can use my length as well as my athleticism to block shots and get steals and turn defense into offense. I am going to be a glue guy for any team I play for.
Positionally, where do you think you would have the most success?
Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports
PR: I don’t have a preference between the four and the five but at the next level, I’ll also be able to play the three. I didn’t get to showcase it but my ability to handle the ball and shoot the ball and guard one through five will make me able to play at the three, too.
Are there any goals that you have set for yourself that you can share?
PR: On the court, whatever team I go to, help lead them to the playoffs and hopefully win the championship. Another personal goal: I want to lead the rookies in rebounding. Off the court, I want to help my family get their house together. Fix all the things that are wrong. Do it up for my mom so she can be comfortable, super comfortable.
What are some of the things that you like to do when you are not playing basketball?
PR: I like to watch movies, go for walks. I’m a Christian. I love God. I put all my faith in God. I had a church in Chicago that I was going to. I’ve also been doing online services here in Orlando.
