Matt Bullard Praises Unheralded Ex-Rocket

Former Houston Rockets sharpshooter Matt Bullard went out of his way to shower praise to one of his former unheralded teammates.

Jan 2, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; General view of basketballs on the court before the game between the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports | Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Bullard knows the game of basketball through and through. The man has been around the professional game for over 30 years, in a multitude of roles.

Bullard went from an undrafted prospect to a carving out an 11-year playing career, which included an NBA championship with the Houston Rockets in 1994. Bullard was the perfect type of role player for the Rockets, as Hall or Fame coach Rudy Tomjanovich and GM Carroll Dawson sought to surround Hakeem Olajuowon with shooters and/or floor spacers.

Bullard was consistently one of the Rockets' better shooters on the roster, boasting a career long-range average of 38.4 percent. Another pivotal role player on the Rockets' championship teams was Carl Herrera, who was a tenacious defender and junkyard dog.

Herrera was a part of both of the Rockets' championships, unsurprisingly, as every team needs that skillset. The aforementioned Bullard recently went out of his way to shower the unheralded Herrera with praise.

"To win a championship, you have to have a superstar or three, but you also have to have role players who fit well with your superstars.

Carl fit perfectly with our team, both on and off the court. We called him ‘Amigo’ because he was a friend to everyone on the team. 

Everyone loved him, his personality was without ego and all he wanted to do was win. He played hard when he got his chance, and he was a great teammate on the bench when he wasn’t playing."

Bullard continued.

"Carl’s play on the court in the '94 Finals was critical to our victory. The New York Knicks had a huge and nasty front line. 

Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason. We had to have Carl coming off the bench to battle those guys or we wouldn’t have won the title. 

Carl was tough, did not back down from the physicality, and was very effective on both ends of the court. Offensively he was able to score in a variety of ways. On defense, he was able to guard multiple positions and rebound effectively."

Herrera isn't often spoken about by Rockets fans, as many of the new-age Rockets fans weren't around during the title years, so it's awesome to see Bullard give him his flowers.

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