Sacramento Kings: Buddy Hield And The Burden Of Expectations
In a matter of months, Buddy Hield has gone from adjusting to the NBA level to being a centerpiece of the future for the Sacramento Kings.
A little more than a week ago, the Sacramento Kings shocked NBA circles by trading away the team’s star DeMarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Making a move of that degree had been a long time coming, with many within the team’s fan base as well as some figures in the organization reportedly believing it would be the best move for the Kings to truly wipe the slate clean and start anew.
But there was the other side of the transaction, specifically what the Kings were getting in return for Cousins.
The return for Cousins wound up being a package comprised of rookie Buddy Hield, swingman Tyreke Evans, combo guard Langston Galloway, a top-three protected 2017 first-round pick and a 2017 second-round pick.
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Needless to say, the package the Kings received was a lightning rod for criticism from portions of the fan base, pundits and followers of the league alike.
Sure, many factors played a part in how Cousins was valued around the league, but everyone was left wondering if that was all they could get for someone who’s established himself as an All-Star talent for three years running.
Sacramento Kings
Considering Evans’ contract is expiring after this season and Galloway holds a player option for next year, the centerpiece of the deal (for now) is the 23-year-old Hield.
While he’s only just a few months into his professional career, Hield’s not that far removed from his illustrious collegiate career at the University of Oklahoma, one he capped off with a sensational senior campaign where he averaged 25 points per game, shot 50.1 percent from the field and 45.7 percent from three-point range.
That season obviously played a huge part in Hield being taken sixth overall by the Pelicans in last year’s draft, one spot ahead of another sharpshooter in Jamal Murray, whom Hield was often compared to in the lead up to the event.
Like many players in this year’s rookie class though, Hield has shown signs of trying to adjust to the NBA game this year, something that’s certainly to be expected of all newcomers no matter their potential.
However, Hield now carries that to his new home in Sacramento, a new environment that comes with a whole new set of expectations. Those expectations might not necessarily be demanded by Kings fans, but perhaps more so the team’s front office and ownership.
Of course, trading for Hield was already proof of how highly the Kings value him, but it apparently lies far deeper for owner Vivek Ranadive, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN.
Source familiar w/ Kings’ thinking: "Vivek thinks Buddy [Hield] has Steph Curry potential.” Am told that fixation was a key driver in deal.
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) February 20, 2017
In addition to that, there’s also the comments made from Hield after his first practice with the team regarding his interactions with Ranadive during the season, which come courtesy of Sean Cunningham of KXTV Sacramento.
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If being traded for a franchise player wasn’t enough, being held to a high standard or even compared to one of the league’s greatest shooters is more than enough for a rookie like Hield to take on.
At this point, we are far from seeing where Hield rounds out as a player in the league. Chances are he’s more likely to be a solid rotation player, who carries potential as a deadeye shooter (Hield currently ranks in the 82nd percentile in spot-up situations this season, per NBA.com/stats).
There’s obviously more to his performance throughout the years to come and Hield’s work ethic as well as his character have all been praised throughout his stops on both levels.
Those intangibles were a clear point of emphasis behind the Kings’ motivation to move Cousins, considering his many incidents regarding his behavior on and off the court. Bringing in Hield helps going about that in the Kings’ quest in rebuilding a new culture for the future.
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Nevertheless, Hield’s development on the court is strongly tied to the Kings’ burgeoning rebuild and living up to high expectations could be more or less what defines his time in Sacramento.