Detroit Pistons: 3 goals for Reggie Bullock in 2018-19

3. Maintain his defense

Bullock’s money maker is going to be his shooting ability. However, 3-and-D wings are arguably the hottest commodity outside of superstars. Bullock’s size and athleticism allow coaches to throw him at positions one through four in small ball lineups.

This increases the team’s switchability, which is important in Casey’s system. While they won’t switch everything all the time, small lineups will require players to switch on defense.

Bullock has hovered between a bench player and starter level on defense throughout his career. While the team doesn’t expect him to be a lockdown player at the level of Johnson, they need him to be decent.

If he regresses excessively, teams will be able to target him relentlessly on switches. He flashes the ability to be a good functioning player on the defensive end, and he just needs to maintain that level this season.

While his shooting will make some noise this season, his ability to be a net positive on both ends of the floor will earn him more minutes. The team added Glenn Robinson III this offseason, who plays a similar role to Bullock.

While Bullock will be given every opportunity to start, there are players behind him that are definitely going to push him for that spot. His shooting should stick, but it’s the defense that is the thing to watch.