Reed Sheppard "super excited" to play Justin Edwards, nationally ranked opponents

North Laurel boy’s basketball head coach Nate Valentine put together a gauntlet of a schedule for the 2022-23 season. That’s part of what comes with having a nationally-ranked recruit committed (now signed) to play basketball at the University of Kentucky. 6-foot-3 CG Reed Sheppard is a four-star prospect and one of the 50 best seniors in the country. Now in his final year at North Laurel, it’s time for his high school swan song, which in his case means traveling all across the eastern United States to take on the best of the best.

Coach Valentine, Sheppard, and the rest of the Jaguars have one goal in mind this year: win the state title. North Laurel was knocked out of the first round of the KHSAA Sweet 16 last season but will enter ’22-23 as one of the few favorites to take the crown. There is added talent in bruising 6-foot-4 forward Gavin Chadwell along with the return of key starting pieces. The team should be well-prepared by the time the postseason comes around, too.

Most notably for the Big Blue Nation, North Laurel will travel to Louisville on Dec. 11 to take on another Kentucky commit, five-star SF Justin Edwards and Imhotep Charter (PA).

Like Sheppard, Edwards also signed his national letter of intent during the first day of the early signing period on Wednesday. The two have developed a friendship since before Edwards even committed to UK back in July, but they have never faced each other on the hardwood. Sheppard plays on the Adidas AAU circuit, Edwards with Nike. A showdown in Louisville will give Kentucky fans a first-hand look at what’s to come next season.

“We talked about it a little bit at Big Blue Madness because it was kind of a rumor going around,” Sheppard said on Wednesday about facing his future teammate. “But I’m super excited to finally be able to play against him, never been able to play against him. Just watched him play and everything, so I’m super excited to play against him. It’ll be really fun.”

According to Sheppard, there hasn’t been much trash-talking with Edwards just yet, but competitive mindsets will likely take over once the ball is tipped.

“Not yet, not yet. But I’m sure it’ll start once we get on the court,” Sheppard said with a grin.

Imhotep Charter is hardly the only major opponent on North Laurel’s schedule though. The Jaguars will play in the City of Palms Classic (Fort Myers, FL) against Charlotte (FL) High School. A win there would pit them against Myers Park (NC), which is ranked No. 26 in the country, per Ballislife.com’s FAB 50. For reference, Imhotep is ranked No. 10 in the same nationwide rankings. North Laurel, which came in ranked No. 44, will also travel to Springfield, MA for the annual HoopHall Classic to take on Mount Saint Joseph (MD).

“It’s probably — it’s not probably, it is too much for a high school team,” Coach Valentine said with a slight smirk about North Laurel’s schedule. “But the experiences these kids are gonna get this year, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime deal. Some of these kids have never been to Florida, certainly never been in the Boston area, so for them to be able to go play in the HoopHall, play in the City of Palms, play in Freedom Hall, and get to experience those things, the win-loss column may take a hit, but you can’t pass up an opportunity like that for guys from London, Kentucky.”

It’s not just out-of-state opponents that will test North Laurel, either. The Bluegrass has plenty of talented programs from east to west that will contend with the Jaguars for a state title. A pair of preseason scrimmages before the schedule begins against George Rogers Clark (the defending state champions ranked No. 43 by the FAB 50) and Great Crossing (which includes a ’25 Power 5 prospect in 6-foot-11 Malachi Moreno) get the ball rolling. Regular season matchups against the likes of Lexington Catholic, Lyon County (featuring four-star ’24 prospect Travis Perry, who holds an offer from UK), Madison Central, and Covington Catholic will provide plenty of challenges throughout the season.

“There should be no surprises. When we get to the region, hopefully get on to the state tournament, there should be no surprises,” Coach Valentine added. “When you play the best in the country — I started looking at those national rankings and we’re playing like five guys in there, which is way too many but it is what it is. Like I said it’s about the experience and we’ll get better along the way and if we take some lumps we’ll certainly learn from it and go on.”

By the time the postseason hits come this spring, North Laurel will be as battle-tested as anyone.