A Royal Pain
Fansided

3 Reasons Why The Sacramento Kings Should Trade Buddy Hield

By Anthony Cardenas

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 15: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings smiles during a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on March 15, 2019 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 15: Buddy Hield #24 of the Sacramento Kings smiles during a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on March 15, 2019 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Buddy Hield
Sacramento Kings Buddy Hield (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

Mistakes & Missteps

The reasons that many Kings fans find Buddy Hield to be somewhat expendable are his defense and his on-court mistakes, particularly in crunch time.

Hield’s usage rate increased this last season under the new head coaching staff, and his role transformed as well. Instead of being used primarily as a catch-and-shoot guy, Hield was asked to handle the ball more and often times take control of the offense. It rarely worked, as Hield’s flaws were put on display whether it was his fault or not.

Hield averaged 2.3 turnovers per game (up from 1.8 the season prior) this season, and his turnover percentage was the highest since his rookie season. It was not rare to see Hield overshoot a pass to a teammate and have it end up in the 4th row, and it often happened in some of the most important moments of certain games.

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This is actually what caused the aforementioned “trust issues”, since Luke Walton and the coaching staff had Hield on the bench during the fourth quarter on multiple occasions. They couldn’t count on Hield to take care of the ball when ball security was of the utmost importance, which made him nearly unplayable in certain situations. That is a tough thing for a prominent three-point shooter.

It isn’t just bad passes. Hield had 59 lost ball turnovers this last season, eight more than the season before despite playing in 18 fewer games.

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