When longtime Houston Rockets player and broadcaster Matt Bullard announced that he wasn’t returning to his usual television role with AT&T SportsNet Southwest, he made clear that it wasn’t his decision.
However, that doesn’t mean that he isn’t excited about what’s to come in his new role as an analyst in Houston’s front office beneath general manager Rafael Stone. “This change for me is very exciting,” Bullard tells Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. “It’s a new challenge I’m really excited about. I’m looking forward. I’ve already been to work, been looking at draft prospects. It’s been a blast so far.”
The Rockets currently own three first-round picks in the July 29 draft, headlined by the No. 2 overall selection. As such, Bullard should have a busy month as he gets acquainted with many of the 2021 rookie prospects. NBA free agency then begins in the first week of August, which will prompt yet another round of player evaluations by teams.
Matt Bullard (@bull50) on joining the #Rockets front office: “This change for me is very exciting. It’s a new challenge I’m really excited about. I’ve already been to work, been looking at Draft prospects. It’s been a blast so far.” pic.twitter.com/lJwpKqyHYw
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) July 6, 2021
Bullard and Chris Wallace, who spent nearly 20 years as a general manager with Boston and Memphis, are the newest additions to Stone’s staff. Outside of Stone and assistant general manager Eli Witus, all are broadly considered scouts or analysts and are not given a more formal job title — since Stone prioritizes a collaborative approach and wants his front office members to share input on all sorts of topics.
Houston’s full list of scouts and analysts now includes Bullard, Wallace, Ed Pinckney, Chuck Hayes, Matt Barlowe, Alain Digbeu, Jake Flancer, Ross Homan, Ed Kupfer, Jimmy Paulis, Javier Pesquera, Marko Radovanovic, Jason Roman, Ben Rubin, Travis Stockbridge, and Cole Zwicker.
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