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Reed Sheppard talks about growing up in Kentucky and which Wildcats squad is his favorite
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- Reed Sheppard talks about growing up in Kentucky and which Wildcats squad is his favorite
Reed Sheppard grew up as a big University of Kentucky fan. His favorite Wildcats team was the 2014-15 squad, which featured Devin Booker and Tyler Ulis. The Houston Rockets guard was born and raised in London, Kentucky, a home rule-class city of approximately 8,000 people, where basketball is among the most beloved sports.
Like most in their area, Sheppard took a great interest in the Kentucky basketball program, where his father, Jeff, is among the standout products, having won two NCAA championships (1996 and 1998) and been named the most outstanding player in the 1998 NCAA Tournament.
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On his appearance on "The Old Man and The Three" podcast with Rockets teammate Steven Adams , Reed shared what it was like growing up in the US Southeast and how basketball figured into it.
"[London, Kentucky is a] small town, it's like 8,000 people. Um, not a whole lot to do. But, you know, it's cool because it's like you grow up with the same people all through, you know, like elementary school, middle school, high school. So, you kind of keep the same friend group, um, growing up. So, like still to this day, I stay in touch with a lot of people back home and it's a lot of family and stuff as well," Sheppard shared .
Reed went on and looked back at the 2014-15 Kentucky team, which for him was one of the standout squads in the school's history.
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"I like the, um, obviously one of the better teams, the team that went 31 and 0 [in the 2014-15 season] with Book and those guys. That was super fun to watch, but Tyler Ulis was like one of my favorite Kentucky players growing up. So watching him there in his two years was two of my favorite teams," he said.
Talented freshman class
The 2014-15 Wildcats team, coached by John Calipari, featured a talented freshman class. Apart from Devin Booker and Tyler Ulis, the team also featured future NBA players Karl-Anthony Towns and Trey Lyles .
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Featuring a balanced attack, the squad went undefeated (31-0) in the regular season, which was the best start in school history. The Wildcats that year made their way to their 17th Final Four but lost to Wisconsin.
After their one season in Kentucky, Towns (10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks) and Booker (10 points and 41.1% shooting clip from three-point territory) joined the 2015 NBA Draft. KAT was selected first overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves while DBook was picked at No. 13 by the Phoenix Suns .
As for Ulis, Reed's favorite Wildcat, he stayed for one more year in Kentucky and made a huge jump in his sophomore campaign, finishing with averages of 17.3 points, 7.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals while helping his team to the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. He played three seasons in the NBA and is now an assistant coach at Arkansas under Calipari.
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Reed as a Wildcat
After being a fan of the Wildcats, Reed also became one of them, playing one season in Kentucky in the 2023-24 campaign. He had an impressive one-and-done run in college, finishing with averages of 12.5 points. 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals while shooting 53.6% from the field and 52.1% from deep. The 6'2" combo guard won a number of freshman player of the year awards, including in the SEC.
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He then applied for the 2024 NBA Draft and was selected third overall by the Rockets. In Houston , Sheppard is enjoying an improved showing in his sophomore season, with numbers of 12.8 points, 3.3 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 1.5 steals and a 42.8% clip from beyond the arc in 24 games so far.
While he may have expanded his horizons beyond Kentucky, the Bluegrass State is deeply ingrained in Sheppard, and evidently, he would not have it any other way.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Dec 20, 2025, where it first appeared in the College section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
