Getty Buddy Hield guards CJ McCollum
The Los Angeles Lakers need more reliable shooters around All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis and Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has a trade idea to help the purple and gold.
In a May 18 article titled “Lakers’ Hypothetical Blockbuster Trades to Shake Up NBA Offseason,” Buckley proposed that the Lakers trade Malik Beasley and a future first-round pick to the Indiana Pacers for Buddy Hield this summer.
“Hield, who might be too old for the rebuilding Pacers to keep, just had an absurd shooting season, netting a career-high 288 triples at a 42.5 percent clip,” Buckley wrote. “He’d have cheat-code potential playing alongside James and Davis, who could both feed him for spot-up shots and thrive in the open areas that his shooting would create.”
Hield signed a four-year, $94 million contract with the Sacramento Kings in October 2019. The sharpshooter will make $18.6 million next season, the final year of his deal.
The 30-year-old Hield is one of the greatest shooters of all time. He was second in the NBA this season in 3-point field goals (288) and shot 42.5% from beyond the arc. The Oklahoma product is a career 40.2% shooter from 3-point land, which is good for 39th in NBA history.
Zach Buckley Really Wants to See Buddy Hield on the Lakers
Buckley really wants to see Hield on the Lakers. In a May 4 story called “Lakers’ Most Realistic Trade Targets in 2023 Offseason,” Buckley wrote that the Lakers “should strongly consider making another run” at Hield.
The Lakers and Pacers discussed a Russell Westbrook-Myles Turner-Hield trade several times last summer and at the beginning of this season. According to an October 3 report from Jovan Buha, Sam Amick and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Los Angeles almost sent Westbrook and unprotected first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 to Indiana for Turner and Hield in October before Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka determined that giving up two future draft picks was too steep of a cost to pay.
The Lakers wound up trading Westbrook to the Utah Jazz at the February trade deadline in a three-team deal involving the Minnesota Timberwolves. Los Angeles acquired Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt from Utah and D’Angelo Russell from Minnesota.
However, Beasley is currently out of Los Angeles’ postseason rotation and Russell is not playing well versus the Denver Nuggets in the conference finals.
Proposed Trade Lands Lakers Both Buddy Hield & Myles Turner
Under CBA rules, the Lakers could trade Beasley, Vanderbilt, Max Christie, Mo Bamba and a 2029 first-round pick to the Pacers for Hield and Turner this summer. If Los Angeles loses to the Nuggets in the conference finals — they are currently down 2-0 in the series — Pelinka may have to consider revamping the roster again this offseason.
Hield has career averages of 16.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists with the New Orleans Pelicans, Kings and Pacers. He put up 16.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season for the Pacers in 80 games.
The Lakers nearly acquired Hield from the Kings in the summer of 2021. However, they decided to trade for Westbrook from the Washington Wizards instead.