Buddy Hield is the perfect target for the NY Knicks at the deadline.
Trades are one of the most popular topics amongst fans, but as I mentioned in my article Knicks’ 3 biggest competitors for Bradley Beal, the scenarios talked about rarely happen for two reasons.
The first is that fans tend to overvalue their own players.
The second is that no one considers what other teams are willing to offer for a player.
In this article, I explore what it would take to trade for Buddy Hield.
While Buddy Hield isn’t the first player that gets mentioned in possible trades to the Knicks since he doesn’t have the same connection points as other players, he definitely looks like one of the more realistic trade targets.
When you study Sacramento’s situation you realize that they are going to have to make some tough financial decisions after this season.
You also know that the owner, Vivek Ranadive, is desperate to win. The Kings haven’t been to the playoffs since 2006 and the last playoff series they won was in 2004.
Those were the Chris Webber, Mike Bibby, Peja Stojakovic, and Vlade Divac lead teams. That is a longer playoff drought than the Knicks’.
Should the NY Knicks make a move for Buddy Hield?
The Kings are looking to save money and rebuild quickly, those goals usually run counter to each other.
When you look at Sacramento’s cap sheet for next season, you see that De’Aaron Fox’s salary is going to increase by $20M as he will no longer be on a rookie contract.
The Kings will have 3 players making over $20M next season, De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, and Harrison Barnes, which is a lot for a bad team.
They will also be looking to resign their Center, Richaud Holmes.
Sacramento is not going to trade Fox since he is their franchise player. They are not likely to trade Harrison Barnes since he is their only good frontcourt player and has strong ties to the owner, Ranadive, and the head coach Luke Walton.
The three of them have relationships from their time in Golden State.
The Kings also have depth at the guard position thanks to the emergence of rookie Tyrese Haliburton. They also have a solid role player in Cory Joseph that will make $12M next season.
All these factors make Hield the odd man out.
There are many playoff teams that could use an outside shooter like Buddy Hield, but only two can provide a competitive offer to counter the Knicks.