Facing a tough and physical Detroit defense, second-year Rockets guard Reed Sheppard struggled with both shooting accuracy and turnovers in Sunday’s summer-league loss.
In the second game of the NBA’s 2025 summer league for both teams, the Houston Rockets (0-2) fell to the Detroit Pistons (2-0) on Sunday afternoon, 98-83 (box score).
All games of the five-game, 10-day summer league event are played at the Thomas & Mack Center and Pavilion in Las Vegas, and each of the league’s 30 teams participates. Rosters for each team are available here.
After a strong debut on Friday, it was a rougher outing for second-year Rockets guard Reed Sheppard, who had 18 points, 6 turnovers, 4 steals, and 1 assist while shooting just 6-of-19 from the field (31.6%) and 1-of-7 from 3-point range (14.3%).
The physical, pressing defense of the Pistons frequently created problems for Sheppard and other members of Houston’s summer squad. Detroit, which features a number of players with NBA regular-season experience on its roster, also won with ease in its summer-league opener.
From Sunday’s game, other statistical lines of note included:
Daniss Jenkins (Pistons): 23 points, 6 assists; 7-of-10 shooting (70.0%), 3-of-4 on 3-pointers (75.0%)Kevon Harris (Rockets): 16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists; 6-of-12 shooting (50.0%), 1-of-5 on 3-pointers)Tolu Smith (Pistons): 15 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks; 4-of-7 shooting (57.1%), 7-of-8 on free throws (87.5%)Kennedy Chandler (Rockets): 13 points, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks; 5-of-14 shooting (35.7%)
For Houston, it was part one of a back-to-back at summer league, with the third game of their five-game slate scheduled for Monday afternoon versus Atlanta. Tipoff versus the Hawks (2-0) is at 3:30 p.m. Central, and the game will be televised live on NBA TV.