The Sacramento Kings have a lot to evaluate this offseason, but what is garnering the most attention at the moment is whether or not the team should trade a disgruntled Buddy Hield. While I am not totally opposed to the idea, Hield should not be traded unless it is for the perfect package. Let me explain.
Whether you’re a fan of Buddy or not, there’s one thing we can all agree on: he’s one of the best three point shooters the NBA has to offer.
Not only is he the reigning three point champion, he holds other surreal accolades in the three point department. Hield is a career 41.1% shooter from deep and holds the number 8 and 11 spots on the most three pointers made in a single season list.
His 11th spot of 271 threes would be higher too if not for the NBA shortened season.
Hield is coming off back to back seasons where he sank more than 270 threes on a 41% clip. He has made 11 three pointers in a game once and sank 9 in a game twice. Hield is the quickest player in NBA history to make 800 three pointers and has the most three pointers ever in a player’s first four seasons.
Hield has established himself as a deep threat in the league and with his shooting prowess, the Bahamian is definitely a worthy asset.
On top of his incredible skill behind the arc, another reason to hold back from trading Buddy is the fact that he has had one “bad” season. Luke Walton let Hield stray away from his strengths, creating habits that proved detrimental to Hield’s season.
If this game plan is reassessed before the start of next year and Buddy is limited as a purely catch and shoot guy next to Fox as he was under Joerger, then all will be right in the world again.
Other factors play a part as well in potentially trading Buddy Buckets.
Hield will never be satisfied coming off the bench. If the team decides to keep him as a sixth man, then trading him might be the best option as this role will only displease Hield more.
This possibility is also factored by what the Kings plan to do with Bogdanovic. Bogi played great in the bubble besides one game, and is a restricted free agent come the offseason.
Retaining Bogi will not come cheap, and there’s only enough room at the starting shooting guard position for one player.
If Bogdanovic remains in Sacramento, will Walton keep him as the starter or will Buddy move back to the starting rotation? These are important decisions the front office and coaching staff will have to make this fall.
Trading away a player of Buddy’s caliber might not be the best idea for Sacramento. Especially in a league that heavily relies on threes, it would not be a great move to trade away one of the best at knocking those kinds of shots down.
But if the Kings won’t work with Hield and keep him on the bench, only then should a trade be explored that gives Sacramento a great asset in exchange for one of the best shooters in the league. Hield has worth, and I would expect valued assets in return.
