"He looking at KD as a last resort": Rockets fans done with Reed Sheppard after one game after waving off Kevin Durant multiple times

The Houston Rockets entered the season with high hopes. Adding Kevin Durant to the mix propelled them to championship contention, but their first game of the season was a challenge. They went on the road to face the defending NBA champions, and while they were in command for most of the game, they ultimately lost 125-124 in double overtime.

Afterward, fans on social media called out Reed Sheppard, who seemed to wave off Durant multiple times yet didn't do much with the shots he got.

PeeWeeDaPlug

@PeeWeeDaPlug

Maybe we so old and Reed so young that he has no clue who KD is.

Here are some of the choice reactions.

"I’m sick p, he looking at kd as a last resort," a fan said.

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@LiLlondon337

@PeeWeeDaPlug Nigga hear KD and think Kash doll wtf was he thinking 😭🤦🏾‍♂️

M3Mat

@0xM3Mat

@PeeWeeDaPlug maybe he’s young… or maybe he just skipped NBA history class 😭

Others, however, gave him a pass:

Professional Hater

@ipullLtds

@PeeWeeDaPlug Yall acting like a top 3 pick who’s a shooting guard should be looking to pass first lmao how about you put him in the starting lineup so he can learn something instead of barely playing him.

WONIO

@TONIO1203

@PeeWeeDaPlug Or maybe KD was point shaving and not trying to get the ball

1stnFREEthrow

@1stnFREEthrow

@PeeWeeDaPlug In all honesty.. Lu Dort was in KD grill all throughout the 4th and OT. KD looked like he was exactly hunting to get the ball either.

Even so, Kevin Durant doesn't feel like he has to take every shot. If anything, he fully trusts everybody around him to make plays.

“The team closes the game out. We make plays as a team. I’m not expected to make every big shot in every close game,” Durant said after the game. “My presence out there can ease the tension for everybody, and we can make plays. We’ve all just got to be prepared for it.”

Sheppard had a subpar game off the bench, scoring just nine points on 11 shots to go along with two rebounds, four assists and two 3-pointers on seven tries.

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Kevin Durant takes the blame for the loss

Kevin Durant also had an uneven debut by his standards. He scored 23 points on 16 shots, adding nine rebounds and three assists. He also missed all four of his 3-pointers and went 5-for-6 from the line. However, a free throw that he missed may have been the reason for their loss.

“I missed the free throw, and I fouled Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) at the end to put them up one,” Durant said (per Talkbasket.net). “I think those two plays are the reason we lost.”

Durant is a proven veteran who has been there and done that, so he knows he has to avoid those types of mental miscues.

“I’ve got to be better. I’ve got to knock that free throw down. I’ve got to stay down and be more disciplined,” Durant added. “Those opportunities to get a stop to seal the game, they don’t come around too often. I’ve got to take more advantage of those.”

Still, in the end, the OKC Thunder are the reigning champions for a reason, and Houston still took them to double overtime and lost by a single point. That's an encouraging sign for a new team that doesn't even have a true point guard on the roster.