The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

Chavano “Buddy” Hield added another accolade to his résumé as one of the best shooters in basketball.

Hield has now made more three-point field goals than any other player through the first 400 games of their NBA career.

He set the mark of 1,209 three pointers in his 400th game - a 105-103 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 12.

Hield shot 4-9 from three-point range to finish with 14 points and five assists. The sixth year Sacramento Kings guard heads the list of top three-point shooters through their first 400 games, well ahead of Stephen Curry (1,121) and Klay Thompson (1,098) of the Golden State Warriors, and Damian Lillard (1,050) of the Portland Trail Blazers.

In his role as the Kings’ sixth man this season, Hield is averaging 16.7 points and is shooting 39 percent on three pointers on an average of 10.5 attempts per game.

As of November 14, Hield is second in the NBA this season in three-point field goals made with 54. Curry leads the league at 64. It marks the second record-setting moment for Hield this season.

In October, he became the franchise’s all-time leader in three-point field goals made and surpassed the mark of 1,070 set by Peja Stojakovic.

Hield shot 6-15 from three-point range and finished with 24 points and seven rebounds in a 110- 101 loss to the Utah Jazz.

Stojakovic spent eight years with the franchise and had a single season high of 240 three-point makes in the 2003-04 season. Hield accomplished the feat in just six seasons and has had single season highs of 278, 271 and 282 three point makes in the last three seasons.

A career 40.6 percent shooter from deep, who was traded to the Kings midway through his rookie season, Hield has continued to produce despite moving in and out of the Kings’ starting lineup in recent years.

“I’m just doing what the team wants me to do. I’m doing my job,” Hield said during training camp.

“Whenever Luke [Walton] puts me in and calls my number, just go in and do my job. If he starts me or if he doesn’t I just have to be professional, do my assignment and make something happen when I get out there...be effective.”

Kings general manager Monte McNair recently discussed Hield’s shooting prowess and role amid trade rumours with the Athletic.

“There’s one other guy in the league who’s a pretty good shooter (clearly referencing Steph Curry). But Buddy is right there as one of the top two shooters in the league. His job is to let it fly, and he’s doing it,” he said.

“And yeah, we had some (trade) conversations over the offseason.

“I don’t want to go into too much detail there, but (the approach was to) treat ‘Buddy’ like the adult that he is and I think he appreciated that. He does the same with me.

“And I said, ‘Look, you know, obviously your name has been out there. But if it doesn’t work out, if nothing happens, you come back, you’re expected to let it fly.’ And he’s been doing that.”

Last March, Hield also became the fastest player to make 1,000 career three-pointers in NBA history.

Hield set the mark in just 350 games to reach the milestone faster than Curry, who held the previous record of 369 games.