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In search for shooting, the Los Angeles Lakers have reached out to the Detroit Pistons about veteran sharpshooter Reggie Bullock, according to Tania Ganguli and Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times:
The Lakers have been among the teams that have contacted the Pistons about Reggie Bullock. So far Detroit hasn’t been very interested in moving him for what they’ve been offered. This is the last year of his deal and he’s making $2.5 million this year.
— Tania Ganguli (@taniaganguli) February 2, 2019
Lakers like Bullock’s ability to shoot the three-ball. https://t.co/FhP65sSUQs
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) February 2, 2019
The Lakers, the fourth-worst 3-point shooting team in the league (33.7 percent), could use a boost in their proficiency from behind the arc. Bullock fits the bill.
This season, Bullock is shooting 37.1 percent from behind the arc, including 38.3 percent on catch and shoot threes and 38.8 percent on “open” 3-pointers, according to NBA.com, which defines “open” threes as 3-pointers where the shooter has 4-6 feet of space from nearest defender.
On the season, the Lakers rank dead last in the league in terms of catch and shoot threes (32.9 percent)
— Alex Regla (@AlexmRegla) February 2, 2019
Reggie Bullock is shooting 38.3 percent on the season in his catch and shoot chances from deep (235 attempts)
Because Bullock only makes $2.5 million annually, he would be relatively easy to acquire if the Pistons are open to a move. The Pistons are just $482,000 below the luxury tax, per Bobby Marks of ESPN, so they can’t take any money back. They had trade exceptions that would have helped them facilitate a trade with the Lakers, but they expired on Jan. 29.
Because of that, if the Lakers wanted to trade for Bullock, they’d likely have to take a player in addition to Bullock. For example, a straight up trade involving Michael Beasley and Reggie Bullock wouldn’t work, but a trade including Beasley and Lance Stephenson for Bullock and Stanley Johnson would (under the rules, to say nothing of whether or not the Pistons would accept such an offer).
Unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like the Pistons are that interested in moving Bullock.
The Pistons are only two games back of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference and with two All-Star caliber players in Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin on their roster, they have a ton of pressure to make the postseason. Detroit hasn’t made the playoffs since 2016.
However, if nothing else, this report confirms that the Lakers are looking for shooting on the trade market, along with their reported interest in Wayne Ellington and Terrence Ross. If they strike out on Anthony Davis because of their reportedly underwhelming trade offers, trades for players like Bullock are ones they will likely have to make if they want to upgrade on the margins amidst a tough postseason push.
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