A Royal Pain
Fansided

Can Buddy Hield Win The 3-Point Contest?

By Anthony Cardenas

WASHINGTON, DC -  MARCH 11: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings shoots the ball against the Washington Wizards on March 11, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. 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 License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC -  MARCH 11: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings shoots the ball against the Washington Wizards on March 11, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. 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 License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Buddy Hield will represent the Kings during All-Star Weekend. What, if any, chance does he have to win the 3-Point Contest?

The participants of the 2020 3-Point Contest were officially announced Tuesday afternoon, and Buddy Hield will be the only player representing the Sacramento Kings at All-Star Weekend.

It will be the second time that Hield will take part in the event after finishing in third place last year. While Stephen Curry, who placed second behind only Joe Harris, will be missing from this year’s iteration, but the rest of the field is full of some of the game’s best.

There are only two players that rank in the top-nine in 3-pointers made that WON’T be participating in James Harden and Bojan Bogdanovic. The only participant that is not in that top-nine is last year’s champion. So what kind of chance does Hield stand of taking home the trophy on Saturday, February 15th?

Overcoming The Competition

Hield currently ranks third in the NBA in 3-pointers made, having been passed by Damian Lillard over the last few games due to Lillard’s unstoppable streak. But of the eight participants, Hield is tied with DeVante Graham for the worst 3-point percentage at 37.6 percent after shooting nearly 43 percent a season ago.

Luckily for Hield, he has apparently snapped out of a slump that plagued him around the turn of the calendar. From December 20th – January 22nd, Hield shot just 32.5 percent from deep, including a four-game stretch in which he made just 7 of 39 3-point attempts. But as soon as Hield headed to the bench, his numbers and efficiency went gone up. In the 6 games that Bogdan Bogdanovic has started over him, Hield has averaged 22.2 points on 48.4 percent from 3-point range. If he is able to continue his upward trajectory, then he stands a chance to make some noise in this year’s contest.

His biggest competition and this year’s likely favorite will be Damian Lillard.

Lillard is on a historic tear, averaging a blistering 48.8 points over his last 6 games and is shooting a ridiculous 57 percent from deep and is averaging north of 14 attempts per. If he is able to carry over his in-game prowess to the 3-Point Contest, then there won’t be many opponents who stand a chance.

Next. Dear Kobe: A Letter From A '90s Kid. dark

The only other player on the Kings’ roster that might have had a chance at participating in All-Star Weekend was De’Aaron Fox. But the third-year point guard will use the break for rest instead of competing in the Skills Challenge.

Home/Kings News