You can’t take Reed Sheppard out of the Joe Craft Center

Reed Sheppard was back in Lexington last week getting shots up with Derek Willis inside the Joe Craft Center, bringing two Bluegrass natives separated by a decade together under the same roof.

You may remember Willis’s young son going viral, with the toddler in an immaculate rebounding position as the former Wildcats were drilling corner 3-pointers, captured by his wife, Keely:

Willis may no longer be in the gym, but Sheppard is back like he never left. In fact, maybe he didn’t leave? Either way, his girlfriend, Brailey Dizney, shared a photo of the second-year Houston Rocket getting shots up again in the Joe Craft Center, standing in front of Kentucky’s eight national championship banners.

Nothing like the Sheppard family rocking the blue and white back home.

Sheppard is back in town for his Sheppard Family Foundation luncheon, among other events, including one with Dick Vitale — who shared a picture with all of the Sheppards on Wednesday.

“Yes REED SHEPPARD will have a big 2nd year with (the Houston Rockets),” Vitale said of the former Wildcat.

Before that, Sheppard was back in London for a local Back To School Bash, giving away 1,000 free backpacks, shoes and 2,500 hot meals to tornado victims.

“You can tell how excited some of these kids are getting. You tell them they’re getting shoes and backpacks, and they’re jumping all around. They’re just excited,” Sheppard told WKYT.

Earlier this month, Sheppard was named ESPN’s No. 1 sophomore to watch ahead of 2025-26 NBA season coming off an up-and-down year with the Rockets.

“Sheppard has the chance to be a huge swing factor in Houston’s title chase — in theory, he’s stepping into the perfect situation,” ESPN wrote of the London native. “The question is whether next season is the right time and how the Rockets might have to adjust their depth accordingly. The simple fact is that we haven’t really seen him yet, and what it means for Houston’s place in the arc of this season earns him the top spot on this list.”

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