Sacramento Kings: Have we seen the best of Buddy Hield?

Heading into his age-26/27 season, can the Sacramento Kings realistically expect any more improvement from Buddy Hield or has he reached his ceiling?

After he broke out in his third NBA season, should the Sacramento Kings expect further improvement from a 26-year-old Buddy Hield? NBA players generally reach their peak around age-27 and Hield will be 27 in December, but Hield was drafted at 24 — so could he still have room left to grow?

After being drafted in 2016 and averaging 10.6 his rookie year in New Orleans and Sacramento, Hield made a marginal jump his second year improving in points, rebounds, assists and efficiency before making an incredible leap his third year.

In his third year, Hield increased his scoring by 7.2 points per game, grabbed 1.2 more rebounds, added 0.6 more assists, increased his box plus/minus by 1.3 and increased his true shooting percentage by 3% while taking nearly five more shots per game and playing six more minutes each night.

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In short: he balled out, but is this the best we’ll see of Buddy? Not likely.

Buddy will be 27-years-old before the start of 2019, but he’s only got three years of NBA experience under his belt. From 1989-2017, the average age of a lottery pick was 20.7 years old — Buddy was drafted at 24. That’s a substantial difference, which means Buddy could still (theoretically) be years away from reaching his peak, a thought that’s not as crazy as it sounds.

Hield became a legitimate three-point threat in 2018-19, cementing his legacy by making the most three’s through a players first three seasons in NBA history, besting Damian Lollards record by an ironic three three’s. While it’s unrealistic to expect Hield to make another leap in his long-range shooting, his shooting overall could still see some minor improvements in terms of efficiency.

With a full year as a no. 1 option under his belt, Hield will be able to better prepare for this season, going into it knowing he’s the no. 1 guy, and not having to prove that early on. As a result, his confidence shooting the ball should increase, leading to efficiency increases in that area. Aside from that, there’s a few main areas Hield can still be expected to improve in.

On offense, Hield needs to improve his shooting under-10 feet as he shot just 24% on relatively high-volume as he often failed to drive, use a floater or pull up to draw contact, often forcing up low-percentage shots which killed offensive momentum at times. If Hield can tighten up this area of his game, he can become a legitimate scoring threat at all three levels — becoming more than just a deep shooter.

Speaking of drawing contact, Hield’s free throw attempts per-36 minutes increased by 1.3, but he still took just 2.7 free throws per game. After increasing his shots at the rim by 109 from last season and increasing his free throw percentage by a point, Hield’s major focus needs to be on getting to the line. We know he can convert at a high-clip, but not getting to the line is a serious hole in Buddy’s game; if he can improve on his free throw rate as he’s did from 2017-18 to 2018-19 his totality as a scorer grows that much more.

Defensively, however, Hield is still a work in progress. It was readily apparent watching games this season that he’s a competent defender in space and on the perimeter, but the real issue lies when he’s off the ball.

Far too often Hield was a step slow on switches or to recognize when to take risks defensively. A large part of this could be attributed to the Kings’ overall lack of defensive skill, but with the right coaching and some better defenders surrounding him, Buddy could become an above-average defender with plus-offense; a recipe for success and a sure-fire way to become an all-star talent.

While his improvement won’t be as substantial as it was this season, there’s still room to grow and it’s clear Buddy hasn’t peaked, yet. That peak may be reached next season, but the point is he’s not there yet and we haven’t seen the best of Buddy Hield.