Buddy Hield - love him or hate him, sit him or play him (split)

#31
Buddy averaging 45.7% from 3 and 100% FT post-all star. Need a 3? Walton be like screw that, he doesn't play defense and may turn the ball over.
I don’t know if we would have won with buddy in the game in the end but we all know we lost with him on the bench. Even if he doesn’t get the last shot, he could have been a decoy to spread the floor more. I just don’t get it. It’s the last play.
 
#33
I'm super interested what the excuse is gonna be for Luke and Vlade when Buddy gets traded to Philly and makes them a title team dropping 25 a game.

The closing minute was absolutely pathetic coaching from Walton. 2 quick, contested 3's when in both scenarios, we had plenty of time to work a play and get a better shot? Meanwhile, you're 2nd best offensive player is sitting on the bench for 45 minutes ice cold so you can't utilize him when you need offense in crunch time.

Great coaches don't bench their best offensive players in crunch time. This post-all star break has been a good run, but we've seen the tremendous gaps in coaching in a few match-ups against really good teams.
While I don't disagree with you this talk of how a player when he leaves the Kings will make the next team a championship one needs to stop, we heard it all how DMC makes any other team he's on 15 games better and all this other crap. Buddy could easily be replaced by Malik Beasley and quiet a few other SG's. But I agree Walton has somewhat misused him, looking back at it we really should have moved one of Bogi/Buddy at the deadline to force Luke to play one or the other without having the ability to ice them.
 

rainmaker

Hall of Famer
#34
Screw buddy hield. I'm tired of his awful turnovers I don't want him dribbling the ball ever. I would've done the same thing as Luke. He was trash and made trash decisions with the ball as always. Didn't deserve to be in I don't care if he's a 3pt champ

Also screw kyle Lowry hit every damn shot.
If you don't want Buddy handling the ball, that's on the coach. Devise a role where he's spotting up and playing to his strengths.

The idea you can't find a way to use the 3pt champ in a positive role is ludicrous. Notice a guy like Korver never heard complaints about foolish dribbling and passing. It's because his coaches along the way defined his role.

I many times don't know what Walton is watching.
 
#35
If you don't want Buddy handling the ball, that's on the coach. Devise a role where he's spotting up and playing to his strengths.

The idea you can't find a way to use the 3pt champ in a positive role is ludicrous. Notice a guy like Korver never heard complaints about foolish dribbling and passing. It's because his coaches along the way defined his role.

I many times don't know what Walton is watching.
Also, it's been a recurring theme (and Walton said as much himself) that we've been STARTING the game poorly and also playing poorly in the 3rd quarter. Guess who ISN'T starting the first and third quarters? The idea that Buddy is THE reason (or even one of the bigger reasons) we've been losing games recently is ridiculous, and that's not even mentioning the games we've weathered bad 3rd quarters to win. Heck, without Buddy we wouldn't even have come close in the Sixers game. But what's new, these fans made up their minds from day 1.
 
#36
Also, it's been a recurring theme (and Walton said as much himself) that we've been STARTING the game poorly and also playing poorly in the 3rd quarter. Guess who ISN'T starting the first and third quarters? The idea that Buddy is THE reason (or even one of the bigger reasons) we've been losing games recently is ridiculous, and that's not even mentioning the games we've weathered bad 3rd quarters to win. Heck, without Buddy we wouldn't even have come close in the Sixers game. But what's new, these fans made up their minds from day 1.
The Raptors were clearly crowding and attacking Buddy, leading to classic Buddy turnovers. I think Walton should've had Buddy in for that last play, even if it was for decoy purposes only, but I certainly understand why he left him out (Powell or Lowery were in Buddy's pocket most of the evening).
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#40
IMHO our main problem, as Walton pointed out, wasn't the end. It was the first quarter...and the third. And, to paraphrase Forrest Gump, that's all I've got to say about that.
 

dude12

Hall of Famer
#41
I’m with the others who complained that Buddy wasn’t in there at the end. Seems dumb. Use him as a decoy if you have to.....guarantee he would have created more doubt for the defense.

I‘m not a Buddy apologist but there certainly seems to be a double standard in short leash/long leash when it comes to Hield and mistakes. I mean, I’ve watched Bogi equally as bad and he’s not pulled. I guess I don’t get it and I’m of the opinion that Walton didn’t quite get it right at the end in this game.
 
#43
Not having Buddy at the end seems like a tactical mis-step by Luke but nothing more. Not a tragic "fire Luke" blunder - just an eyebrow raiser. I think in the big picture, you have to look at Buddy getting hopelessly trapped against the sideline twice in a row early in the game, and chucking a pass into the stands like he was Martini in Cuckoo's Nest. I have no problem with Luke enforcing a standard as far as handles, BBIQ and defense at the expense of Buddy's ego.
 
#44
If you have a player that was literally crowned the best 3pt shooter a couple weeks ago and you don't even have him in the game when you need a 3pt shot, it's borderline malpractice.

The scouting report has been very clear from early in the season. Every team puts their energy into making sure Buddy can't get going. Because when he gets hot, it could be game over. What naturally alleviates that is just one additional player besides him and Fox on the court that teams have to worry about on a nightly basis. The Kings don't have that consistent 3rd option. So what you get is Buddy being constantly hounded into mistakes. When Walton takes Buddy out due to mistakes, the other team won that battle.

Buddy can run all day. Instead of giving Buddy the ball to walk it up and initiate the offense, have him run teams ragged through screen after screen. It takes ball handling pressure off of him and wears the defense down. If the coaching staff can't make this adjustment during an entire season, I fear how bad they would be outcoached in an actual playoff series.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#45
Has anybody ever considered that Buddy did so much F'ing stupid "stuff" in the game, some of it noticed by the casual fan, other stuff only noticed by Walton in what he expected offensively and defensively, and that Walton just didn't want to reward him by having in at the end of the game? How about if Walton and Buddy had numerous prior conversations of what was expected and Buddy just wouldn't or couldn't do what was expected and maybe Walton was fed up with the nonsense and didn't want him in there, period, end of story. And maybe Walton thought that the five players he already had in there had "earned" the right to be in there because of what they had already done in the game. Maybe there is a different calculus than simply: Buddy is a good shooter, ergo, he should be in the game.
 
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VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#46
Not having Buddy at the end seems like a tactical mis-step by Luke but nothing more. Not a tragic "fire Luke" blunder - just an eyebrow raiser. I think in the big picture, you have to look at Buddy getting hopelessly trapped against the sideline twice in a row early in the game, and chucking a pass into the stands like he was Martini in Cuckoo's Nest. I have no problem with Luke enforcing a standard as far as handles, BBIQ and defense at the expense of Buddy's ego.
Bingo!

Another thing to consider? Winning the 3-point contest doesn't mean you have ice water in your veins during a game. There's nothing else to focus on except how many balls are left in the rack during the ASG contest. In real life, it gets a lot more complilcated.
 
#47
Bingo!

Another thing to consider? Winning the 3-point contest doesn't mean you have ice water in your veins during a game. There's nothing else to focus on except how many balls are left in the rack during the ASG contest. In real life, it gets a lot more complilcated.
You don't go to the ASG unless you're hitting 3s in game at a high clip. He has the most 3point baskets made in a players first 4 years.
 
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VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#48
You don't to the ASG unless you're hitting 3s in game at a high clip. He has the most 3point baskets made in a players first 4 years.
Fair enough. I stubbornly maintain, however, that Buddy just doesn't always have the focus we need from someone at the end of the game. And that's why I think he was on the bench. It's a mystery to be sure - he's complicated and I don't think there's an easy solution.

At the end of the day, I trust Walton and his instincts/insights in this regard. He's a lot closer to these guys than any of us are.
 
#50
Buddy fumbled the ball away numerous times in the second half. Walton has a tradition of the best 5 guys at the end.
Last night Buddy just didn't make the cut.
That kind of mentality is why some teams make the playoffs and others don’t. Who cares what he did prior to that. He’s the teams best 3 point shooter. We were down 3. Why have Holmes in in that situation? It was bad coaching.
 
#52
Was just about to comment on this haha.

"Where is Buddy?!!"

Anyhow....sucks that we lost, but we gave em a heck of a lot of trouble for a team that played 3 games in 4 nights.
Awkward


reminds me of when my family had season tickets in the late 90/ early 2000’s the guy who sat behind me spent the whole game every game loudly heckling Corliss Williamson. Yelling that he stinks and “don’t pass Corliss the ball”. Dude was decked in Kings gear to but really had it in for Corliss and when Corliss was traded from the Kings all of a sudden he never appeared at any games. I always just figured he moved to Toronto to keep heckling Corliss
 
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#53
Has anybody ever considered that Buddy did so much F'ing stupid "stuff" in the game, some of it noticed by the casual fan, other stuff only noticed by Walton in what he expected offensively and defensively, and that Walton just didn't want to reward him by having in at the end of the game? How about if Walton and Buddy had numerous prior conversations of what was expected and Buddy just wouldn't or couldn't do what was expected and maybe Walton was fed up with the nonsense and didn't want him in there, period, end of story. And maybe Walton thought that the five players he already had in there had "earned" the right to be in there because of what they had already done in the game. Maybe there is a different calculus than simply: Buddy is a good shooter, ergo, he should be in the game.
Yea, let's reward the guys who have been digging holes for us instead!

Have YOU ever considered Walton's just isn't perfect and doesn't give Hield the same leash he gives others despite his production?
 
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#54
I’m with the others who complained that Buddy wasn’t in there at the end. Seems dumb. Use him as a decoy if you have to.....guarantee he would have created more doubt for the defense.

I‘m not a Buddy apologist but there certainly seems to be a double standard in short leash/long leash when it comes to Hield and mistakes. I mean, I’ve watched Bogi equally as bad and he’s not pulled. I guess I don’t get it and I’m of the opinion that Walton didn’t quite get it right at the end in this game.
He's not equally as bad as a ball handler. Buddy is guaranteed to make 2 inexcusable TOs on routine plays. It surprises me if Bogdan turns it over at all. That's the biggest thing that will drive a coach insane.
 
#55
Bingo!

Another thing to consider? Winning the 3-point contest doesn't mean you have ice water in your veins during a game. There's nothing else to focus on except how many balls are left in the rack during the ASG contest. In real life, it gets a lot more complilcated.
Come on VF, Buddy has hit his fair share of clutch shots for us, not to mention he's been shooting 100% from the FT line, a number of which were precisely in late game clutch situations being intentionally fouled. Buddy has been shooting 47% from 3 post all star break and at a high volume. There's simply no excuse not to use him.
 
#56
He's not equally as bad as a ball handler. Buddy is guaranteed to make 2 inexcusable TOs on routine plays. It surprises me if Bogdan turns it over at all. That's the biggest thing that will drive a coach insane.
And yet Bogi is only averaging 0.5TO less than Buddy per game. The sure and steady playmaker vs sir oopsalot.
 
#57
Yep. When Pop does it he’s a hard-nosed genius (who still has Timmy on the floor, of course). When Luke does it he’s a terrible dullard.
When Pop does what exactly? Lol let's wait till Like wins 35 games before comparing him to Pop shall we? Pop also got heavily criticized for not having Duncan in THAT play against the Heat btw.
 
#58
He's not equally as bad as a ball handler. Buddy is guaranteed to make 2 inexcusable TOs on routine plays. It surprises me if Bogdan turns it over at all. That's the biggest thing that will drive a coach insane.
Well, if his bad shots and isos don't count as basically turnovers, then maybe they should? Bogi's average at best at literally everything isn't going to cut it going forward. I can't believe some want to sign him to a big overpay while wanting to jettison Buddy to Philly at the first opportunity.

Next year is a disaster waiting to happen if they do that, in addition to a number of potential other losses.
 
#59
Bingo!

Another thing to consider? Winning the 3-point contest doesn't mean you have ice water in your veins during a game. There's nothing else to focus on except how many balls are left in the rack during the ASG contest. In real life, it gets a lot more complilcated.
I dunno. Buddy is pretty clutch. He’s hit game winners, late game tying 3s, or multiple shots to bring us back. He hit plenty of buzzer beaters to end the 1st, 2nd or 3rd quarter too. Luke usually subs him in for last second offensive position. Sit him the 3rd or most of the 4th if he’s playing like a bonehead. I just don’t understand why he didn’t put him in for the last play when all you needed was a 3.
 
#60
Well, if his bad shots and isos don't count as basically turnovers, then maybe they should? Bogi's average at best at literally everything isn't going to cut it going forward. I can't believe some want to sign him to a big overpay while wanting to jettison Buddy to Philly at the first opportunity.

Next year is a disaster waiting to happen if they do that, in addition to a number of potential other losses.
How about Buddy's bad shots and isos, should they be counted as turnovers as well or just Bogdan's? how about any other players bad shots and isos? (and arguing that Bogdan takes more bad shots than everyone else and isos more than anyone else is tenous at best)