Clippers Player Profile: Reggie Bullock

Reggie Bullock Key Stats

Shooting Splits: 35.5/30.1/77.8

Junior year of college: 48.3/43.6/76.7

Reggie was the Clippers 1^st round draft pick last year, taken 25^th overall from North Carolina after his junior season. Standing 6'7 and weighing 205 pounds, Reggie was drafted as a "3 and D" type player that could eventually start alongside Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. There was not much pressure on him as a rookie considering all the veterans ahead of him on the depth chart, but things are changing this year.

The Clippers' weakest position is once again small forward, as it has been for years. Matt Barnes is a starter who won't embarrass himself, but he is not a guy who will really dominate his opposition either. Behind him there is only journeyman Chris-Douglas Roberts, recently signed Joe Ingles, who was merely a modest contributor for Maccabi Tel Aviv, and Bullock. Reggie has two advantages over the other guys based on non-basketball reasons: he was taken in the 1^st round, giving him the advantage of investment, and he has upside, being only 23 years of age to the competitions' 27. Not only can Reggie improve his game, but his youth and rookie deal enable him to be locked up for a good while yet if he does produce numbers.

On the court, Reggie is a 3 and D wing who showed flashes of both those skills last year. On the defensive end, he has good size and decent length, which enable him to match most small forwards as well as smaller guys. He doesn't have enough quickness or close out burst to be a lockdown type defender, but he works hard and has good fundamentals on that end. As a man to man guy his main job will just be to force his opponent the right way rather than shutting him down, but he should be a solid team defender and knows what he must do. Some of the harder parts of NBA defense such as fighting through screens and picks need to be worked on, but improvement should come. Reggie is also solid on the boards, averaging 6.5 rebounds in 30 minutes per game as a junior at UNC. On a team with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan this is less important, but it is always valuable to be a good rebounder.

On the offensive end, Reggie was drafted for his shooting ability, which had mixed results last season. His stroke is extremely nice, smooth, and quick, and is one of the best looking in the league. However, he shot 30% on the three pointers he took, and playing alongside Chris Paul gives you mostly open looks: it isn't like he was taking Jamal Crawfordesque shots out there. Obviously it is a change moving from the college line out to the NBA range, but with his mechanics it feels like Reggie should have done a bit better. Faith should be kept though, since many players struggle from long distance in their rookie years and then drastically improve in their sophomore campaigns. Hopefully Reggie does the same.

The rest of his offensive game is merely a bonus. He can attack off closeouts, but he doesn't have big time explosiveness and his handles need work. He is not much of a passer or playmaker, and should not be expected to do much on that front outside of moving the ball. The only other area where he might really contribute is in the fast break, where his youthful legs should serve him well playing in the second unit alongside Jordan Farmar, who likes to push the pace. Overall though, his only role on offense will be to stand on the 3 point line and drain open shots.

Reggie mostly needs to do one thing this year, and that is prove that he can shoot the NBA 3 pointer. If so, he will probably have the backup minutes at small forward all to himself. While CDR and Ingles can both shoot, neither of them has the potential sniping ability of Bullock, who claims the stroke and mechanics of a 40% shooter from outside. If Matt Barnes goes down, I think CDR would get first crack at the starting spot due to veteran reliability and greater versatility, but Bullock would be a good fit, and if he is shooting and defending well, could claim the starting role for himself.

Look at draftexpress for basic information and some scouting reports (albeit a year or two old) on Reggie. http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Reggie-Bullock-5212/