A Royal Pain
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Sacramento Kings: Player Analysis Through First 6 Games

By Gurjus Singh

SACRAMENTO, CA - FEBRUARY 27: Harrison Barnes #40 and De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Sacramento Kings help up teammate Buddy Hield #24 during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 27, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - FEBRUARY 27: Harrison Barnes #40 and De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Sacramento Kings help up teammate Buddy Hield #24 during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 27, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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SACRAMENTO, CA – OCTOBER 25: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings looks on during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers on October 25, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA – OCTOBER 25: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings looks on during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers on October 25, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Buddy Hield’s Pros

Buddy Hield is an amazing shooter and is one of the reasons that the Kings were drooling over him when they got him in 2016. Last season, he had the best season of his career averaging around 21 points per game while making around 43% of his three-pointers.

This season, his strength has been his shooting (no surprise) as he is making around 39% of his shots. The percentage could be higher, but Buddy’s offense has kept his team in games so far.

Buddy’s defense has also gotten better. Especially against the Charlotte Hornets when he was committing to a full-press defense while the team collectively did not.

Cons

There are many cons that Buddy needs to address. One is his shot selection.

Compared to last season, Buddy’s shooting numbers are not as high, and a reason why has been because he has made bad decisions in terms of taking shots. What makes Buddy a great shooter is that he is a smart shooter. But during this campaign, he has not been that.

Buddy’s turnovers are also up as he is averaging around three a game which doubles the amount that he usually averages. Buddy’s goal this offseason was to get to the free-throw line more often, thus getting more time to handle the basketball. But what is eye-popping is that he is averaging around just one free-throw attempt per game.

During the game, Buddy’s gameplan seems to rely upon creating shots or settling for three-pointers. He needs to do other things than just score such as look at finding open teammates and continuing to move effectively without the ball.

Buddy also needs to keep improving on the defensive end because there are lapses in his defense where he ends up giving up points. These flaws are not entirely on Buddy to improve upon, but the entire Kings roster as well.

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