Should the NY Knicks re-sign Reggie Bullock?
My colleague here at Daily Knicks, Adam touched on this concept recently.
I’m a big advocate of Reggie Bullock the player and the person, and I’d love to see him back in a Knick uniform next season.
He’s been a solid contributor on a New York squad fighting for a playoff berth, and he’s developed a real continuity and connection with key players such as Julius Randle and RJ Barrett.
There’s something to be said about having some roster stability from season to season. He also shoots the three at an above-league average rate and regularly guards the opposing team’s best wing scorer.
It’s a no-brainer, right?
Bullock will have his suitors come to the off-season and he’s the sort of player contending teams can always use – a defensive wing who provides above league average value as a spot-up three-point specialist.
There will be a market for him, and he’s likely in for a nice little pay increase from the $4.2m he made this season in New York. What is his likely value then?
It’s hard to really get a gauge on because, in all honesty, he’s a player that is replaceable.
He has a limited offensive game and teams tend to be okay giving away a little bit on defense for a player with a more expansive offensive game.
If I were to go back to the Danny Green comparison for a quick second – now let me first say I don’t think Bullock is quite the player Green is.
Danny has done it more consistently for a much longer period of time now, and he’s a proven winner. That being said, Danny Green does provide a lot of the same attributes as Reggie Bullock, I mean their season stats are fairly similar.
The difference in paycheck between the two though is stark. Green signed a 2-year $30m deal with the Lakers last year (traded to Philadelphia this season) and Bullock signed a 2-year $8.2m deal with the Knicks.
Danny Green was an overpay by the Lakers who were desperate to win a chip, there’s no doubting that. His championship pedigree certainly helped contract negotiations to an extent as well.
Bullock will get a bigger deal this off-season, I don’t doubt that. But just what is he worth? I think it starts anywhere north of $4.2m and anywhere very far south of $15m.
I love Reggie, but the simple fact is he’s replaceable. If a 2-year deal around the $6m-$8m range per season were available for New York – I’d do it. If it’s anything much more, I’d balk.