Everyone has heard at this point the massive trade the Kings made, sending DeMarcus Cousins to the Pelicans in exchange for Buddy Hield and pocket change. What officially allowed this trade to occur was not only Cousin’s apparent image as a team cancer bu Vivek Ranadive’s love for Buddy Hield. The Kings owner believes he could even be the next Steph Curry! In fact, he has been so infatuated with Buddy that every time the Kings and Pelicans played he would say, “We are still gonna get you”, according to Sean Cunningham.
Putting aside those shudder-inducing enticements from Vivek, Buddy seems happy with his new home. Averaging 13.8 points per game 3.3 rebounds and shooting 41.2% from 3 since joining the team. Despite this uptick in production, Buddy is, rightfully, rejecting the Steph Curry comparisons. In an interview with Grant Hughes from Bleacher Report, he said;
“I’m not Steph Curry.”
“I’m Buddy Fresh,” he said. “I’m Buddy Love. I’m just me. I’m just Buddy.”
Ignoring for a moment the two incredible nicknames he gave himself, the desire to be no one but himself is admirable. The unnecessary pressure that was cast down by the owner following those comments must have been immense. Already being the center of a mega deal surrounding a perennial All-Star is hard enough without it. Buddy Love seems to be taking it in stride and producing despite it, however. Look for him to slowly step into the rookie of the year race over the coming weeks.
