Buddy Hield Delivers in the Clutch With Win Over Pistons, ‘I'm Blessed'

Buddy Hield is probably still running. The team plane will meet him in Brooklyn on Monday morning when the team faces the Nets as part of league's Martin Luther King Jr. Day festivities.

After drilling a triple at the buzzer to give the Kings an improbable 103-101 win over the Pistons Saturday evening at Little Caesars Arena, the Bahamian Bomber made a victory lap around the arena and disappeared through the tunnel.

It was as big as a shot as it gets. Hield's heroics saved the Kings from an 0-2 start on their season-long, six-game road trip and sent the Pistons away salty.

"I'm so happy for him and our whole crew," coach Dave Joerger told NBC Sports California via text following the win.

The Kings have become known for their big shots late in games. Willie Cauley-Stein hit a game-winner earlier this season, as did Bogdan Bogdanovic. This was the first one of his career for Hield, who finished with a team-high 35 points on 7-of-9 from behind the arc.

"I'm blessed," Hield told reporters following the game. "I can say I got one in the NBA at the highest level. It's fun, man, as a kid, you always dream of hitting one of those types of shots, especially at a high level like this. It's something I'll cherish for the rest of my life."

It was the shot that almost wasn't. Hield bobbled the inbounds pass. He even thought of firing the ball to center Willie Cauley-Stein, who was open on the play. But he stepped through a group of defenders and found a wide open look at the basket.

"It slipped, but I was able to regain it and after that, was able to split three guys and I put it up in the air," Hield said with a smile. "It's all she wrote after that. It went in."

The 26-year-old carried the scoring early for Sacramento, scoring 20 points on 8-of-9 from the field in the first half. He vanished in the third quarter, missing all three of his shots from the field.

Joerger started the fourth quarter with his second unit. With 6:53 remaining in the final frame and his team trailing by 10, the Kings' coach turned to Hield and his starters to make one last run.

"We hung in there long enough with our defense to make it close at the end," coach Dave Joerger said. "Buddy gets it going."

The sharpshooter responded with an incredible 15 points down the stretch, hitting 5-of-10 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from downtown.

"He was hot, you saw the ball go in a lot today and I had no doubt it was going in," backcourt mate, De'Aaron Fox said in post game.


It was a huge win for the Kings. After battling through a three game homestand, to hit the road with a three game win streak, Sacramento fell apart in Charlotte. An 0-2 start to the trip would have been tough to take and it would have dropped the Kings back to .500 on the season.

The win helped steal some momentum going forward and put a smile on everyone's face.

"I'm really proud of our group, happy group, and Buddy made obviously a great play and that feels good," Joerger told reporters.

Sacramento doesn't have long to bask in the glow of victory. Monday's game in Brooklyn marks the halfway point of the trip and they'll face a difficult back-to-back Tuesday against the Raptors in Toronto.

A win over the Pistons puts the Kings at 1-1 on the trip and 24-22 on the season.

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