After the Pistons traded Isaiah Stewart to Memphis during the offseason, the expectation was that Paul Reed would be in for a bigger role in the team’s frontcourt. Reed’s role has been even more significant than anticipated in the early going due to Jalen Duren’s hamstring strain, but the seventh-year big man certainly doesn’t look overwhelmed by the increased responsibilities.
As Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes in a subscriber-only story, Reed has expanded his game along with his role so far this season, having been more willing to shoot mid-range and three-point shots when the defense is sagging off of him. The approach is paying off in the early going, as Reed’s 13.8 points per game and 63.0% field goal percentage are both career highs. He’s also contributing 7.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.2 steals per night.
“He plays to his own beat, and I think that’s hard for opponents to catch a rhythm when he is doing that,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff recently said of Reed, per Sankofa. “There’s so many things that he does. I’ll just say this, there’s no person I’ve been around that works harder on his game than P-Reed, and you’re seeing that work pay off. You talk about each guy has a role in leadership for this team, he leads by example by his work ethic, and it’s paying off for him.”
Here’s more from across the Central:
After scoring just 14 points in his first five games of the season, Pistons forward Ron Holland had his best game of the fall on Friday, scoring 18 points and racking up four steals in 22 minutes of action in Brooklyn. After the win, J.B. Bickerstaff observed that the team doesn’t rely on Holland for scoring and that it’s “all the other stuff that he does that makes him unique” (Twitter link via Sankofa). Still, the Pistons’ head coach acknowledged that he loves seeing the 21-year-old – who will be extension-eligible next July – make strides on the offensive end. “It’s the growth that he’s shown, it’s his commitment to the work,” Bickerstaff said (Twitter link via Hunter Patterson of The Athletic). “To be able to do it on both ends of the floor, to play in a position of confidence … I thought he did a great job of that today. He’s going to keep getting better.”
The Pacers assigned guards T.J. McConnell (right hamstring strain) and Johnny Furphy (ACL surgery recovery) to the G League on Friday so they could get in some work with the Noblesville Boom, per Tony East of Circle City Spin (Twitter link). While McConnell could be nearing his season debut, I’d be surprised if Furphy is close to returning, given that he suffered his ACL tear less than nine months ago. As East notes (via Twitter), when former Pacer Victor Oladipo was coming off a major leg injury during the 2019/20 season, he had some G League assignments in November and December but didn’t make his NBA return until late January.
Rookie forward Caleb Wilson wasn’t the only Bulls player disappointed with the way the team played in Friday night’s loss to Boston. As Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic writes, forward Isaac Okoro spoke after the game about needing to consistently “play harder,” while veteran wing Buddy Hield delivered that same message during an impassioned in-game lecture on the bench shortly after 6’9″ forward Matas Buzelis was out-muscled by 6’1″ guard Payton Pritchard for an offensive rebound and a layup in the second quarter (Twitter video links). K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network (Twitter link) adds that there was a “collective disgust” at the team’s first-half effort in the locker room after the game.