Buddy Hield’s Nine Three-Pointers Lead to Kings Win Over Spurs
Feb 8, 2020, 10:45 PM | Updated: 10:47 pm
Photo by: Kimani Okearah
The Sacramento Kings went 3-0 at home this week, and have won six of their last eight games after defeating the San Antonio Spurs 122-102 on Saturday night.
“I thought our group was really just all around good tonight, ” said Kings head coach Luke Walton, “We talk a lot about this team and how we want to play fast an loose, but there’s such a fine line between playing fast and loose and being able to mentally lock in”.
For the second straight night, Sacramento made 19 three-pointers and shot over 50% from beyond the arc. It was also the second straight night the Kings held their opponents to under 30 points in every quarter, something rarely done in the modern NBA.
Buddy Hield, who will represent the Sacramento Kings in the NBA Three-Point Shootout during All-Star Weekend next week, finished the night with 31 points off the bench, shooting a phenomenal 90% (9/10) from three-point range.
“Boy, he’s a great shooter and he works very hard. Normally when great shooters that work as hard as Buddy does as far as coming to the gym at night and all this and that, if they’re in a shooting slump, they shoot their way out of it. He’s done a nice job of staying with it – he never loses confidence,” said Walton.
“I think I was more locked in. Just shooting, playing confident with whatever shot I got and I’m taking it. Take my time and take the most efficient one I can take,” said Hield.
Hield, since coming off the bench, has caught fire from the perimeter. The Kings are now 6-2 since making the move, that seemingly has been positive for both Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic.
Buddy also made history tonight, surpassing Steph Curry as the fastest player to 800 made three-pointers in their career.
“Does that s*** surprise you? He can get it going. I’ve seen him do so many crazy things…he is one of those shooters. I’m just excited to see how many records he breaks in his career. Still early” added Harry Giles when asked about Hield’s milestone.
Giles has gotten a lot of opportunity to shine as of late, with all the injuries to Kings big-men, and he’s made the most of that opportunity. Saturday night, Giles grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds and just missed his first double-double. During the 4th quarter, Giles shared a moment with the Golden 1 Center crowd that he admits he has a special connection with.
“We got a bond. They my people. I (felt) it in my body so I had to let it out.”
Marvin Bagley, who has missed a majority of the season with multiple injuries, spent some time talking with the media about his lingering foot issue that has him out until after the all-star break.
Bagley admitted that he re-aggravated his foot when he was tripped during a game in Utah against the Jazz, and is trying to stay positive and get pain-free before returning.
“I’m definitely trying to come back this year but that’s too far ahead at this point,” said Bagley, when asked about the possibility of being shut down for the remainder of the season.
The Kings, now 21-31 on the season, head back out on the road for meetings with the Milwaukee Bucks and Dallas Mavericks before the all-star break.
