2016 NBA Draft: Will Buddy Hield become a star in the NBA?

Buddy Hield will head to the 2016 NBA Draft after ending his Oklahoma career with a Final Four. Will he become a star in the 2016 NBA?

Buddy Hield’s senior season at Oklahoma reads like a story book. Not only did the Bahamian sensation lead the Sooners to a 29-8 record and their first Final Four since 2002, he also averaged 25 points per game on 50.1 percent shooting.

As a result, the 6-foot-4 shooter claimed Naismith College Player of the Year honors while also taking home the John R. Wooden Award and Oscar Robertson Trophy as the nation’s top collegiate player.

Yet when it comes to Hield’s draft status, projections wary widely.

Bleacher Report’s Timothy Rapp predicts Hield to fall to Minnesota at No. 5 while ESPN’s Jeff Goodman believes Boston should take him with the third pick. DraftExpress meanwhile has Hield going No. 7 to Denver, indicating the only consensus on Hield seems to be his status as a bonafide lottery pick.

The real question is whether the energetic guard will become a star for whichever team pulls the trigger.

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There’s little doubt Hield can score with the best of them. His game combines ambitious, fearless attacks to the rim with great range from the perimeter. Hield is also an excellent foul shooter, connecting on 176-of-200 trips to the stripe in 2015-16.

But will his game translate to the NBA level?

Unlike past eras when the draft provided teams with professional ready contributors on a regular basis, long-term potential is the current buzz phrase when it comes to drafting players. NBA teams are more willing than ever to bring rookies along slowly and therefore allow for an adequate adjustment period.

For Hield, that could turn out to be a good thing.

While consensus top prospects Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram toiled in college for just one season, Hield enjoyed a full four-year collegiate career that saw him increase his scoring average from 7.8 points as a freshman to the 25 points he poured in as a senior. The end result was 2,291 career points in 132 games for Lon Kruger’s Sooners.

Some teams may be concerned Hield’s 214-pound frame won’t hold up against bigger, bruising competition in the NBA. During his senior season, Hield finished with 42 steals while also grabbing a career-best 5.7 rebounds per contest. Nevertheless, at 6-foot-4, he may be susceptible to physical guards as he possessing an advanced post-up game.

Thankfully, Hield has enough energy and intangibles to overcome such difficulties.

Against Kansas on Jan. 4, Hield logged an incredible 54 minutes while scoring 46 points on 13-of-23 shooting, nearly willing the Sooners to a win before ultimately falling to the Jayhawks in triple-overtime.

He also played a full 40 minutes against Iowa State on Jan. 2, 39 minutes in back-to-back games against Oklahoma State and West Virginia on Jan. 13 and Jan. 16 respectively, and was on the court for at least 36 minutes in all but one game after Feb. 2.

It’s unlikely he’ll be called on to log that many minutes once the NBA season rolls around. After all, most teams like to rotate reserves whenever possible to keep personnel fresh.

Still, Hield’s offensive gifts and work ethic figure to translate well into a league becoming more and more reliant on jump shooting. Simply put, Hield has an elite level jumper which should provide plenty of opportunities for court time.

Will Hield become a star? No one can know for sure since drafting is an inexact science often requiring a leap of faith.

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One thing does appear clear however. Hield is a hard worker who can score and has shown an ability to improve over time. He therefore fits the profile of a true professional and may make an NBA team very happy in the days and months ahead.

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