Since having a falling out with head coach Luke Walton last season, Buddy Hield has looked to be on the way out. He has ramped up the pressure on the front office now with his antics.
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After being one of the deadliest shooters in the league during his second and third seasons, Buddy Hield was relegated to a bench role by new Kings coach Luke Walton at the beginning of this season.
Walton inserted Bogdan Bogdanovic into the starting lineup in his place. This resulted in lower involvement for Hield than he would like at the peak of his powers. The Bahamian player is looking to force his way out.
Buddy Hield likes tweet revealing Doc Rivers’ move to Philadelphia 76ers
Earlier last month, Buddy Hield was revealed to have liked a post on social media linking him to a move to the 76ers. He built on that same rumor today by liking a SportsCenter tweet revealing Doc Rivers to be the Sixers’ new head coach.
The Sixers are lacking for shooting on their roster. Landing a pure shooter like Hield who can shoot both in pullup and spotup situations will be a real bonus for the team.
Buddy Hield refusing to pick up coach Luke Walton’s calls
Above and beyond courting other teams to land him, Hield has taken one of the irretrievable actions with regards to trade requests. He is not picking up coach Luke Walton’s calls in an attempt to apparently freeze out the team management and force their hand.
Remember when Buddy Hield publicly praised Luke Walton? That’s what he was doing about a year ago. https://t.co/SeeH4mnAhb
— Jason Jones (@mr_jasonjones) October 2, 2020
Given the nature of how badly Hield wants out, the Kings will want to trade him. But they will want fair value for their talent, and that may be a bridge too big to cross.