Buddy Hield says Kings need to ‘ask Jesus’ for help after injury to Harrison Barnes
The Kings have gotten well acquainted with their training staff while being besieged by injuries this season, but Buddy Hield thinks it’s time to turn to a higher power.
“We’ve got to go to Jesus, man, and ask Jesus to heal us up quick,” Hield said.
The Kings were awaiting word on Harrison Barnes late Friday night after the team’s starting small forward limped off the floor in the fourth quarter of a 127-106 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at Golden 1 Center. Barnes left the game with 3:02 remaining due to an apparent injury to his right quadriceps.
Kings coach Luke Walton could not provide an update on the nature or severity of Barnes’ injury immediately after the game. The Kings were already missing Marvin Bagley III, Richaun Holmes and Bogdan Bogdanovic.
“You don’t wish these things happen on players,” Hield said. “Every time you look at the bench you see somebody’s going down, going to the locker room. We’ve got to stay prayed up, man, for sure, but you go through trials and tribulations for a reason. Something good is about to happen and I believe that.”
Barnes was one of the few players who had remained healthy for the Kings. De’Aaron Fox missed 17 games with a grade-3 ankle sprain. Bagley has missed 30 games due to a broken thumb and a sprained foot. Bogdanovic has missed eight games due to hamstring and ankle injuries. Holmes has missed the past two games with a strained right shoulder.
The injuries have taken a heavy toll on the Kings (15-24), preventing the team from establishing continuity and a consistent rotation. Fox noted that the Kings are still within two games of the Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs for the eighth spot in the Western Conference despite their struggles.
“You’ve got to continue to play,” Fox said. “It’s something that happens. The injury bug has definitely hit us, but at the end of the day we’re still not far out of the eighth seed, so it’s not time to just give up.”
Hield, Barnes, Cory Joseph and Nemenja Bjelica are the only players in Walton’s rotation who have not missed time due to injuries. Bjelica is playing through discomfort after rolling his ankle twice in the past week. He went down in a heap after landing on Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges’ foot on Tuesday.
“I sprained it really bad, but nothing is damaged so I’m ready to go,” Bjelica said before Friday’s game. “You just have to play through the pain.”
Bjelica posted 12 points and 13 rebounds against the Bucks. Walton was surprised he played at all.
“Belly really battled considering I played him 40 minutes and his ankle is pretty swollen still,” Walton said. “… I’m not the doctor or the trainer, but my guess would have been that he would have missed some more time, but he told me, ‘Don’t worry about me, coach. I’ll be all right.’ He’s a vet. He knows his body. He knows what he can play through and what he can’t.”
Walton said he believes Bagley will return for Monday’s game against the Orlando Magic. The team has provided no timetable for Bogdanovic and Holmes to return, but both should be back soon.
Fox was asked if he felt the team was getting close to 100-percent healthy.
“Well s---,” he said. “Harrison just got hurt, so I don’t know. I don’t know. Belly rolled his ankle last game. He’s in the training room right now (and) Harrison just got hurt, so I can’t say so.”
Kings upcoming schedule
Jan. 13 vs. Orlando, 7 p.m.
Jan. 15 vs. Dallas Mavericks
Jan. 18 at Utah, 6 p.m.
Jan. 20 at Miami, 2 p.m.
Jan. 22 at Detroit, 4 p.m.
This story was originally published January 11, 2020 at 12:25 AM.
