The White Demons officially left the team, and Shepard is expected to be trained to become the next Rivers?

On July 7, the trading door for the free agent market was officially opened, and the previous trading rumors of various teams were settled. Durant and Capela joined forces to join the Rockets, and Whitmore also left the team and went to the Washington Wizards to start a new career.

The former Rockets' seven sons, Jaylen Green and Whitmore have left the team in this offseason, Shin Kyung and Smith Jr. have won a long-term contract of 100 million yuan, Amen's value has become a non-sale product for the team. Ethan is also an indispensable part of the rotation lineup, and only Tanhua shows Shepard's future seems a bit confusing.

This summer, the management has fully strengthened the center and forward positions, and they are both immediate players. The strength and rotation depth of the frontcourt players are second to none in the league. It is reported that Durant, who is 2.11 meters tall, may even serve as the starting shooting guard, and the Rockets' forward line can be imagined.

In contrast, after sending away Green, Dillon and Whitmore in succession, there were only three small projection players, Van Vleet, Holiday and Shepard. Compared with Van Jordan and Huo Laosan, whose style of play has been established, Shepard is undoubtedly the only remaining player with plasticity potential, and his best template at the moment is the Los Angeles Lakers' starting shooting guard Austin Rivers.

Both are white guards, with average physical talent, and Rivers is better in terms of static talent, but Shepard's outside shooting has a greater deterrence. Both of them have natural disadvantages on the defensive end, so Shepard can only improve his offensive end and organize his ability to make up for the shortcomings of defense on the court.

Rivers averaged 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game this season. As long as Shepard can make half of his offensive contribution, he can become a stable substitute in the Rockets' backcourt. After Green and Whitmore are gone in the new season, whether Shepard can have more opportunities to play will be waiting for us!