Buddy Hield can reach an NBA milestone in Kings’ final game; see what record he can break
Buddy Hield has an opportunity to do something no NBA player has done when the Kings conclude their season against the Trail Blazers on Wednesday night in Portland, Ore.
Hield could become the first player in NBA history to make 600 3-point goals over his first three seasons in the league. Hield is tied with Blazers star Damian Lillard at 599. Lillard will be among the first to know if Hield breaks a record previously held by Klay Thompson and Kyle Korver.
Hield declined to comment on Lillard’s record after tying it in Sunday night’s loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, but Kings coach Dave Joerger addressed it before the game.
“(Hield) works so hard,” Joerger said. “He works at his game and he just has a charisma and an energy that’s fun to be around every day. He loves to play and he loves to work, so what a great accolade it could be for him to surpass those names.
“... I think it’s really, really cool. I’m happy for him.”
The Kings (39-42) have lost five of seven and 10 of 16 after remaining in playoff contention most of the season. They are assured of their 13th consecutive losing season but still have a chance to reach 40 wins for the first time since they made their last playoff appearance in 2005-06.
The Blazers (51-29) are trying to secure home-court advantage in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. They had a chance to clinch the fourth seed with a win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
Winning 40 games would be significant for the Kings, who most predicted to win fewer than 30. Surpassing Lillard would be a wonderful accomplishment for Hield, a guard who grew up in the Bahamas and learned to shoot after cutting the bottom out of a plastic crate and nailing it to a wooden post.
Hield broke Peja Stojakovic’s season franchise record with 275 3-point goals. Hield has made 599 of 1,433 career 3-point attempts, shooting 41.8 percent. Lillard made 599 of 1,629 (.368) over his first three seasons.
Hield started his career in New Orleans. The Pelicans selected him with the sixth pick in the 2016 NBA Draft after he was named National Player of the Year at Oklahoma. The Kings acquired Hield in the 2017 trade that sent DeMarcus Cousins to New Orleans.
Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said he is not surprised to see Hield succeeding in the NBA.
“I can tell you right now, there’s no one — and when I say this, I really mean it — there’s no one in the league that works any harder than he does,” Gentry said. “And I think when you put in the time and when you work as hard as he does, you’re going to get better.
“He works so hard that anything he accomplishes is not a big surprise to us because we saw him in his early stages, and the work that he put in, you just had to know he was going to be a good player in this league. He was not going to let himself fail. So I think it’s an unbelievable thing to accomplish. When Damian Lillard’s name is connected to anything and you surpass that, you’ve done something pretty special.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2019 at 3:08 PM.