Age is Just a Number With Buddy Hield

Don’t Focus On Age Alone With Oklahoma Sooner Buddy Hield

In the past ten years during the months leading up to the NBA Draft, players viewed as the best college prospects were most likely players that only played one college season. Scouts have gotten so infatuated with the freshman prospects that the older upperclassmen are sometimes overlooked. If a player nowadays stays multiple years in college, it is almost like they have a stamp on their forehead that says, “don’t pick me in the lottery”. Some fans assume that if a player stays in college that he has major flaws or isn’t NBA worthy and that is not always the case. This is evidenced by draftexpress.com currently ranking college superstar shooting guard Buddy Hield from the University of Oklahoma as only the 17th best prospect in the country which is a deep discount to his true NBA potential.

Just take the backcourt of the Portland Trailblazers for example. They have two guards who stayed four years in college in Damian Lillard (Former All-Star and Ex-Rookie of The Year) and CJ McCollum who makeup a top five scoring backcourt. Another example is Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics who stayed three years in college, was the last pick in his draft class, and is now an NBA All-Star who scores 21.5 points per game.

While these players are the exception and not the rule, Bahamian Buddy Hield will soon join them as a senior classman who excels in the NBA. When comparing Hield’s senior year in college to the aforementioned players college finale, his game is more complete in that comparison. In short, he can do the things that they didn’t even do when they were in college.

Shooting:

Offense is probably Hield’s best and most talked about attribute. Each NBA superstar has something that he does in an elite fashion and Hield already has that elite attribute box checked off thanks to his shooting. Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors (2014-15 MVP) has shooting as his best and elite attribute as well for example. Not to mention Curry also stayed three or more years in college. Hield is currently shooting 52.3 percent, I repeat 52.3 percent, from three point range with a current average of 7.9 three point attempts per game.

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For comparison, Curry who is seen as possibly the best shooter of all time, connected on only 43.9 percent in his best three point shooting college season on 10.3 three point attempts per game. Hield is also shooting over 90 percent from the free throw line which Curry has never done in a season in college. When you boil down shooting to a single statistic with True Shooting Percentage, Hield has a TS% of 70.1 which is unheard of. Curry’s best TS% in any of his college years was 64. Take a look at the video below. He shoots threes well beyond NBA three point range.

Overall Scoring:

Hield is not your typical shooter. He should not be put in the box of just being a shooter. He is an all-around scorer who happens to have shooting as his best attribute in his repertoire. He currently leads the nation in transition points per game and gets to the free throw line 5.4 times per games which is a very good number considering how much he shoots from the outside. He is an above average athlete who worked overtime on increasing his ball handling ability and the hard work is paying off.

Athletic Tools:

Usually a common concern with a older players looking to get drafted is that they are lacking in some physical area. With Isaiah Thomas it was his height. With Curry it was his strength. With McCollum it was his speed and leaping ability. With Hield he has none of these problems. Hield stands at nearly 6’5, weighs around 215, and has a wingspan that is nearly 6’9 according to draftexpress.com. These are excellent measurements for a shooting guard. Hield is quick, has a nice vertical based on eye test, has long arms, and is muscular/strong. The one weakness scouts claim Hield has is defense but with his athleticism and hard work it will surely get better just like his ball handling ability did.

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Competition:

What makes what Hield is doing so special is not just the numbers he is putting up or how he’s doing it. What makes it special is the fact that he is doing it on a team that is ranked as the best in the nation according to ncaa.com. It is one thing to do what Hield is doing at a small school like the colleges Curry, Lillard, and McCollum played at where they were surrounded by worse players and played against worse players, it’s another thing to do it on the best team in the country totally out shining great teammates and playing the best competition like Hield does.

Draft:

Be Philadelphia 76ers General Manager Sam Hinkie for a moment, and you would seriously consider drafting Hield with the Lakers top three protected pick the team has acquired. In a best case scenario where the 76ers are able to draft at picks one and four, I would draft Brandon Ingram of Duke with the first pick and Hield with the fourth pick. Just imagine a lineup of Ish Smith, Buddy Hield, Brandon Ingram, Joel Embiid, and Jahlil Okafor.

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That line up has pick an roll opportunities, pick and pop, spacing, off the dribble shooting, post up, alley oops, perimeter defense(Mostly Ingram), rim protection(Embiid), and fast breaks etc. Just imagine teams having to guard Embiid and Okafor one on one because they know if they try to double, Ingram or Hield will splash threes all day. If the 76ers leave the draft with Ingram and Hield, the rest of the NBA should be very afraid. A core of Embiid, Okafor, Ingram, Noel, Saric, and Hield is nothing to scoff at.