Report: Kings owner believes Buddy Hield can become as good as Steph Curry
The Sacramento Kings just traded away franchise player DeMarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for a package headlined by rookie Buddy Hield.
Related: Kings hit new low by dealing Cousins for pennies on the dollar
The deal is so lopsided in favor of the Pels that it won't even work in NBA 2K17, but there's apparently a method to the Kings' madness.
Team owner Vivek Ranadive is under the impression Hield has the potential to be like Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry, sources told ESPN's Baxter Holmes.
Ranadive - who has an affinity for shooters - has apparently been high on Hield for a while, having attended his pre-draft workout.
Here is Kings GM Vlade Divac taking in Friday's Rising Stars Challenge that saw the Bahamas native explode for 28 points in the World team's 150-141 win.
Found this in my All-Star game pics: Vlade watching the Rising Stars game where Hield dropped 28 points. pic.twitter.com/lsI1LWTwbr
— Stephen Noh (@hungarianjordan) February 20, 2017
Hield's averaging 8.6 points on a true shooting percentage of 50.2 to go along with 2.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 20.4 minutes per game in his first NBA campaign after being selected sixth overall in 2016.
The former Oklahoma standout, who earned Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors in December, has a long way to go to be anything like Curry, who's the reigning back-to-back league MVP, four-time All-Star, NBA champion, FIBA World Cup winner, and perhaps the best shooter ever.
No pressure, Buddy.