Reggie Bullock Trade: Evaluating Lakers’ Deadline Deal With Pistons

Reggie Bullock

Getty Los Angeles Lakers guard Reggie Bullock

While the Los Angeles Lakers were unable to strike the blockbuster deal they targeted ahead of the NBA trade deadline, they did make a few other moves. One of those involved acquiring sharpshooting guard Reggie Bullock from the Detroit Pistons. This was a move which was made to help provide an immediate spark and some outside shooting for the remainder of the year.

Although the Lakers’ sights were set on New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis, trade talks for him will have to wait until the upcoming offseason. The trade with the Pistons for Bullock was a deal that flew somewhat under the radar, but provided some help in a much-needed area and could prove to be crucial in the team’s playoff push.

As ESPN first reported, the trade featured the Lakers sending guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a second-round pick to Detroit in exchange for Bullock. The 27-year-old guard was in his fourth season with the team but was relied upon primarily for outside shooting during his time with the Pistons.


Reggie Bullock’s Tenure With Pistons

After beginning his career with the Los Angeles Clippers and making a short stop with the Phoenix Suns, Bullock found a home with Detroit. Through the first two seasons of his NBA career, the former North Carolina Tar Heels guard averaged no more than 2.7 points per game in a single season, but his playing time jumped over the three-plus seasons with the Pistons.

After averaging just 11.6 and 15.1 minutes in 2015-16 and 2016-17, Bullock’s playing time jumped in the next two seasons. He played 27.9 minutes last year and 30.8 through 44 games this year. While the 27-year-old isn’t a high-volume scorer, he averaged 11.3 and 12.1 points, respectively. The most impressive mark of his career came in the form of his 3-point shooting percentage during the 2017-18 season (44.5 percent).


Reggie Bullock’s Solid Start With Lakers

Although Bullock has played just five games with the Lakers thus far, he’s been a starter and has produced fairly well. While he got off to a slow in the first game, scoring just two points with three assists and two blocks in 31 minutes, the former first-round pick was able to get things going in the second.

Bullock logged 35 minutes in game No. 2 with the organization, scoring 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Over his first five games, the sharpshooter has averaged 10.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 44.8 percent from beyond the arc.

It’s expected that he’ll remain a big part of the team’s plans this season, but after the year will likely be looking for a new team as he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent.

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