Sacramento Kings: Buddy Hield Named Rookie Of The Month
Buddy Hield ended his first full month with the Sacramento Kings in stride as he took home Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors for the month of March.
Buddy Hield's time with the Sacramento Kings may just be over a month old, but he already has some hardware to commemorate it.
The NBA announced Monday Hield was given Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors for the month of March, along with Philadelphia 76ers forward Dario Saric on the Eastern Conference side.
During March, Hield averaged 14.1 points on 48.3 percent shooting from the field and 42.5 percent from three (Hield also averaged a 61.1 true shooting percentage, too). In addition to his scoring and efficiency marks, Hield averaged 4.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists throughout the month.
Funnily enough, it's not the first time Hield has been given the honor this year as he won it for the month of December when he was a member of the New Orleans Pelicans.
It's just the latest turn in Hield's rookie season and a far cry to the horrendous shooting start Hield got off to start the year. Since his move to Sacramento, Hield has been a standout contributor as part of the team's young foundation in the team's overall rebuild.
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Obviously the numbers he's been putting up speaks for itself, but there's been much more to Hield's growth over the last month with the Kings.
Game by game, Hield's showing that he's more than just a deadeye shooter from deep and while he still has some concerns in this area, he's been a productive playmaker, specifically in pick and roll situations (Hield ranks in the 96th percentile as a pick and roll ball handler since coming to Sacramento, per NBA.com/stats).
Above all else, it has looked like Hield has broken through the proverbial rookie wall and in fact, he's risen to the moment, especially at the unlikeliest of occasions.
Of course, what quickly comes to mind is Hield's rallying play in the Kings' comeback victory against the Los Angeles Clippers over a week ago.
With his growing confidence in full display on a nightly basis, Hield's more pronounced role looks to be a factor in his improved play since joining the Kings.
In fact, Hield spoke on his role as well as his mentality in his change of scenery with Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee after the Kings' loss to the Pelicans last Friday night:
"My role has changed, more a scoring mentality," Hield said. "Trying to figure out how to lead this team to wins and that's the reason why the ownership … brought me here, to try get some wins. I know even with this year, starting in training camp, this offseason we're going to work on it and try to build the right chemistry to get on the right track."
As much of a benchmark earning this honor may be, Hield has shown that he has no sign of slowing down in the handful of games that remain in the regular season.
Hield's already gotten off to a hot start for the month of April as he tied his season-high with 22 points and shot 9-of-15 from the field as well as a 4-of-6 from three in the Kings' 123-117 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Performances like that one are exactly why the Kings had such an interest in Hield in the first place and just over a month into his tenure, there's more reason for the team's ownership and front office to be hopeful in his future.
All in all, Hield's rookie campaign is ending on a high note and his Rookie of the Month award is just the embodiment of that.
