Matt Bullard wants Rockets center Christian Wood to shoot over the top

Ben DuBose
·3 min read
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In his playing days with the Houston Rockets in the 1990s, Matt Bullard was a slender 6-foot-10 forward whose best attribute at the NBA level was an ability to shoot well from distance.

As a result, Houston’s longtime television analyst — and perhaps a future front office member — has some ideas for how young big man Christian Wood can further develop his game. While Wood’s lanky frame often draws attention for his obvious lack of bulk, Bullard doesn’t want to see Wood focus on traditional post play. Rather, he wants the 25-year-old to shoot over the top of smaller and/or less athletic defenders.

In new comments to Zach Allen of The Dream Shake, Bullard said this of Houston’s athletic and sweet-shooting big man:

One of the reasons I like watching Christian Wood play is because I sort of identified with him. We have the same body type, 6-10, long arms, and not real bulky — and, in fact, very slender. … You want to keep him away from banging in the post, because he is not going to have the advantage down there because of the way his body is. The only thing that I think Christian Wood should work on in the post area is shooting over the top of smaller guys.

One of the things I learned directly when I was playing, going against the Detroit Pistons, I remember how exactly it went down. They switched, Joe Dumars is guarding me now, so I take Joe Dumars into the post and Kenny Smith throws me the ball and I’m trying to get advantage on Joe Dumars, and I got no chance because Joe Dumars is up underneath me, and he has a lower center of gravity, and he was so strong… it was like a fire hydrant.

There is no way me at 6-10, like really tall with a high center of gravity, is going to get any leverage on him. Players like Christian Wood shouldn’t be trying to bang in the post, they shouldn’t be trying to punish smaller players. They should be just working on shooting over the top, because that’s where the advantage of his body frame really lies.

The full interview between Allen and Bullard can be read here.

During his first season with the Rockets and in his first year as a consistent NBA starter, Wood averaged 21.0 points (51.4% FG, 37.4% on 3-pointers) and 9.6 rebounds in 32.3 minutes per game. Prior to a severe ankle sprain on Feb. 4, Wood had earned some All-Star consideration for his play. He’s under contract for two more years and is likely a fixture as a frontcourt starter in Houston for the foreseeable future.

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