DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 24: Reggie Bullock #25 of the Detroit Pistons poses for a portrait at media day on September 24, 2018 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images) The Detroit Pistons’ most consistent wing is on his way to Los Angeles. Though the returns aren’t what many expected, some sense can be found in the move. I woke up around 1:30 a.m. to the sound of my phone making so much noise it could have passed for a security alarm. Fitting, really, because the next thing I saw was this: Sources: The Lakers are trading guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a draft pick to Detroit for guard Reggie Bullock. Deal is expected to be completed Wednesday. — Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 6, 2019 Like a thief in the night, the Lakers snuck into Little Caesar’s Arena, snatched up Reggie Bullock, threw him in a suit case and felt bad enough about it they left a few random trinkets on the floor. At least, that’s how I felt at first. In the moment, it was a head-scratching move for the Detroit Pistons (24-29). Just 1.5 games out of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference, Bullock was one of the team’s premier perimeter shooters — with a 38.4 percent clip on the league’s worst three-point shooting team — and its most consistent wing on both sides of the ball. However, hindsight allows certain benefits, and the more removed from the initial news break I get, the more I can convince myself I see a plan in the perpetual fog that has been the Pistons’ future. Clearly, the Pistons were concerned about their ability to bring back the 27-year old Bullock, who shot an impressive 44.5 percent from three a season ago. So, they essentially pulled the NBA equivalent of trading for a minor-league prospect. Adding the 6-foot-8 Mykhailiuk, who has spent time in the G-League (averaging more than 29 points per game) as well as 38 contests with the Lakers, gives the team a young, versatile swingman who is under contract for this season, as well as next. Both years are non-guaranteed. Mykhailiuk has the tools to be a player in this league. A good athlete with a streaky jump shot, the No. 47 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft suffered from a short leash and a largely undefined roll in Los Angeles. He is the type of player that needs the confidence that comes from a team that has a defined role for him to play, and a coaching staff that will believe in him. Will he find that in Detroit? Maybe, but I have to like the prospects of him getting a good shot to show his stuff. Over his final three seasons at the University of Kansas, Mykhailiuk shot 40, 39 and 44 percent from 3-point range. In theory the potential is there for him to develop into the same role that Bullock once played. It is quite possible Mykhailiuk develops into a fine wing player, but that won’t be known until his role within the Pistons organization is fully fleshed out. For this year, though, it puts the Detroit Pistons in a crunch, now being without a reliable 3-and-D player — even more so given the recent news of Stanley Johnson‘s trade to Milwaukee. This move seemingly was made with the future in mind, a change of pace from what has recently been said by team owner Tom Gores, and a general thought process that had been abandoned in recent years under multiple regimes. We are left to simply wait and see if the move reaps an benefits for the Detroit Pistons in the years to come.<doc-sep>NEW YORK — Reggie Bullock leaned down to pick up his carry-on bag late Tuesday night. I had arrived after he had started speaking with reporters following the Detroit Pistons’ 105-92 victory over the New York Knicks. I asked Bullock, who joined the Detroit Pistons in June 2015 with little fanfare, about the rumor he was being targeted by the Los Angeles Lakers before Thursday’s trade deadline. Bullock, 27, said he wanted to remain with the organization where he has blossomed into a top 3-point threat in the past 3½ seasons. But he acknowledged it’s a business. “It’s part of the game,” Bullock said. “It’s great for me to know that a bunch of teams in the league finally know my name after six years, being able to stay dialed in with my talents. “Trying to give all I can to this organization. If that’s the way the organization wants to move, by all means, if it happens it happens, but if not, I’m a Piston.” Bullock was on the move in less than hour. Multiple sources told the Free Press the Pistons are finalizing an agreement to send Bullock to the Los Angeles Lakers for rookie second-round guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a 2021 second-round pick. The official announcement came Wednesday. Just hours after the Bullock trade, the team dealt Stanley Johnson to the Milwaukee Bucks for center Thon Maker. [ Meet Svi Mykhailiuk, the 'LeBron of Ukraine ] The moves acknowledge several things. Already projected to be over the salary cap next season, the Pistons weren’t willing to commit to a big multiyear salary to Bullock, who will be a free agent this offseason. In Johnson's case, the inconsistent fourth-year forward had fallen out of long-term planning and with a $5.3-million qualifying offer due in June, the Pistons moved on. It signals Pistons owner Tom Gores has been convinced to refrain from throwing money at the current expensive roster assembled by former team president Stan Van Gundy with a limited ceiling and few avenues for immediate improvement. They no longer appear to be all-in to become first-rounder fodder in the Eastern Conference playoffs since Mykhailiuk likely won’t help a playoff run this season. The same goes for Maker, a talented big man with 3-point shooting ability, who hasn't clicked in Milwaukee. But with the franchise trying to put together a winning roster around All-Star Blake Griffin, the move probably shows the organization has punted on that goal until the offseason. “Yes, no doubt,” a source texted the Free Press when noting the production Bullock, the team’s best 3-point shooter. “But we can’t overpay him this summer. … We want better than (an eight seed). We weren’t going anywhere.” The rise of an asset After a 32-50 record in 2014-15, Van Gundy was seeking to upgrade the talent base quickly. The Pistons found a partner with the Phoenix Suns, who were seeking to shed salary for free agency. The Pistons acquired forward Marcus Morris from the Suns for a 2020 second-round pick. The Pistons had to take Bullock, who had shown little in two seasons. Bullock wasn’t even assured a roster spot, but he performed well in the preseason and earned a rotation spot to start the 2015-16 season. He got off to a slow start and fell out of the rotation. But he earned another shot late in the season when Johnson went down with a shoulder injury. [ Stanley Johnson traded to Milwaukee Bucks for Thon Maker ] His shooting and movement was instrumental in the Pistons’ playoff push which ended with a first-round loss to the eventual champion Cleveland Cavaliers. Bullock struggled with injuries the next season. He signed a two-year, $5-million contract to remain with the Pistons, but was hit with a five-game suspension to start the 2017-18 season. But he blossomed, finishing second in the NBA in 3-point shooting with a 44.5 shooting percentage. And this past offseason, he started to emerge as a passionate voice in support of the LGBTQ community to honor his late transgender sister, Mia Henderson, who was murdered in 2015. “I definitely had to educate myself about it,” Bullock told the Free Press in 2016. “But obviously, growing up in a household with a sibling that was pretty much a part of that community, I never disrespected her. I never disrespected her friends. “The main message I got from my sister is that she was just happy to live her life. You know what I’m saying? She was just happy.” Bullock gave a heartfelt goodbye to the city on Twitter. Promise unfulfilled Fans loved Johnson's swagger as a rookie. One of the most decorated players in California basketball history, he once challenged LeBron James as a high schooler at James' summer camp for elite players in 2014. The 2015 first-round pick (No. 8 overall) from Arizona immediately assumed the team's sixth man role on a eventual playoff team. The Pistons reached the playoffs as the No. 8 seed where they faced James and the Cavs. He verbally sparred with James during the series — although the Pistons were swept in four games. The future appeared bright, but Johnson really hasn't improved since his rookie season. He clashed with Van Gundy. His 3-point shooting has deteriorated each season. There was hope he could finally emerge as two-way force under first-year coach Dwane Casey after Van Gundy was fired at coach and team president after last season. But it's been more inconsistency. And with players taken after Johnson (Justise Winslow, Devin Booker, Myles Turner, Terry Rozier and others) developing into good players, the fan base has grown to view the 6-7, 240-pound forward as a living symbol of Van Gundy's draft day failures. Johnson could become a productive pro with a change of scenery. No big deals The move would appear to take the Pistons out of the running for Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley Jr., whom is generating a lot of attention on the league’s rumor mill. When asked about the progress of talks with the Grizzlies late Tuesday night, a source said “nothing” was happening. “They’re asking for way too much as of now,” the source added. Conley, 31, was limited to 12 games last season with a left Achilles injury. But there doesn’t appear to be noticeable slippage in his game this season. But it’s all about the money. Conley is in Year 3 of the five-year, $152.6 million deal he signed in the summer of 2016. What have the Pistons proposed? The Utah Jazz reportedly offered Ricky Rubio and a 2019 first-round pick. It’s an easy guess the Pistons have offered Reggie Jackson. A source tells the Free Press the Grizzlies are insisting on a 2019 first-round pick and second-year shooting guard Luke Kennard, who despite an uneven season remains one of the Pistons' few attractive assets. But with the Pistons moving Bullock, adding Conley doesn’t make sense in the short term. Conley would make the team better, but the Pistons would lack financial flexibility for improvement. Along with the Bullock move, it appears the new front office headed by Ed Stefanski has received the OK from Gores to stop throwing good money after bad roster decisions from the Van Gundy era. The trade creates a $2.5 million trade exception, meaning they can take back that much in salary in a deal without having to be concerned with matching salaries, according to ESPN.com’s front-office insider Bobby Marks. The exception expires after one year. The Pistons also move further below the $123.7 million luxury tax line. The Pistons won’t have many avenues for improvement this offseason, but with several players underperforming their contracts (Reggie Jackson, Jon Leuer and Langston Galloway) off the books after next season, patience might be required That will bring roster flexibility in time for the 2020-21 season, flexibility that would have been hindered by a Bullock contract extension. Negative locker room impact? Mykhailiuk, 21, is unlikely to move the needle this season. And a playoff berth could be had. The Pistons (24-29) sit 1½ games behind the Miami Heat for the Eastern Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot.<doc-sep>The Los Angeles Lakers made a trade Tuesday night, but it wasn't the one many of their fans were hoping for. Amid all the Anthony Davis talk, the Lakers dealt guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a second-round draft pick to the Detroit Pistons for guard Reggie Bullock. The deal gives LeBron James & Co. a much-needed 3-point threat. Bullock, 27, is in his fourth season with the Pistons, averaging 12 points and shooting 38 percent on 6.6 3-point attempts per game. According to Second Spectrum, Bullock is shooting 39.8 percent on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers this season. That would rank first among Lakers players with at least 50 catch-and-shoot 3s. Detroit will create a $2.5 million trade exception with the deal. Bullock is in the final year of his contract, and the Lakers will inherit his Bird rights this summer. Mykhailiuk, 21, was drafted by the Lakers with the 47th pick last year, and he is in the first year of a three-year, $4.6 million contract. The Pistons have until July 5 to guarantee his $1.4 million contract for the 2019-20 season. The former Kansas star is averaging 3 points in 10.7 minutes per game this season. The NBA's trade deadline is Thursday at 3 p.m. ET. The Lakers have been in talks with the New Orleans Pelicans about Davis, the All-Star center. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Tuesday that Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson wants the Pelicans to start making counterproposals to offers on Davis, threatening to end talks unless New Orleans shows a willingness to engage in a back-and-forth on reaching a deal. The Athletic first reported the Lakers and Pistons were nearing an agreement on the Bullock deal. Additional reporting from ESPN's Bobby Marks was used in this report.<doc-sep>
The Los Angeles Lakers recently traded for Reggie Bullock. What will he bring to the team? While all of the attention has been on Anthony Davis leading up to the NBA Trade Deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers did make a small move that could help the team. Shortly after an awful loss to the Indiana Pacers, the Lakers shook things up and made a trade for veteran guard, Reggie Bullock. The Lakers sent rookie guard Svi Mykhailiuk and a future second-round draft pick to the Pistons in exchange for Bullock. While Svi is a young player with some potential, Bullock has proven to be a better option for the right now, which the Lakers need. Over the past two seasons, Bullock has really found his groove with the Pistons. Last season, Bullock started in 52 of the 62 games that he played in, both of which were career-highs. With more opportunity, Bullock had a career-year, as he averaged 11.3 points per game, and shot 44.5 percent from three-point range. So far this season, Bullock has continued to play well for the Pistons, as he is averaging 12.1 points per game. Also, he is shooting well from beyond the arc at 38.8 percent this season. Shooting was once again a need for the Lakers after they never really addressed it in the offseason. Due to the addition of LeBron James this offseason, it was surprising to many that the Lakers didn’t surround him with shooters as we saw with the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the addition of Bullock will provide the Lakers with a solid three-point shooter, that didn’t cost them a lot. So far this season, the Lakers’ top three-point shooters are not who we would have expected, as Mortiz Wagner, Lance Stephenson, and Rajon Rondo are leading the way in percentages. Of those three players, Stephenson and Rondo are the only ones that are consistently in the rotation. Adding Bullock will give the Lakers another wing option that can space the floor. As they look to push toward the playoffs, he should be a welcomed addition and help a team that has struggled to shoot.