Fansided

2016 NBA Draft: where are they now?

By Brandon Jefferson

TORONTO, ON - MAY 7: Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons (25) reaches in on Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam (43). Toronto Raptors vs Philadelphia 76ers in1st half action of Round 2, Game 5 of NBA playoff play at Scotiabank Arena. Raptors win 125-89 and now lead series 3-2. Toronto Star/Rick Madonik (Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - MAY 7: Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons (25) reaches in on Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam (43). Toronto Raptors vs Philadelphia 76ers in1st half action of Round 2, Game 5 of NBA playoff play at Scotiabank Arena. Raptors win 125-89 and now lead series 3-2. Toronto Star/Rick Madonik (Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS, LA – JUNE 24: New Orleans Pelicans Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Dell Demps introduces the team’s 2016 Draft selection Buddy Hield on June 24, 2016 at the New Orleans Practice Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2015 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images
NEW ORLEANS, LA – JUNE 24: New Orleans Pelicans Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Dell Demps introduces the team’s 2016 Draft selection Buddy Hield on June 24, 2016 at the New Orleans Practice Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2015 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images /

6. Buddy Hield, New Orleans Pelicans

Since drafting Anthony Davis in 2012, the New Orleans Pelicans had struggled to acquiesce enough talent to get the most out of their once-in-a-generation star. The 2015-16 season saw the Pelicans deal with a multitude of injuries to their top players. Davis, Jrue Holiday, Eric Gordon, Tyreke Evans all missed significant time and the Pelicans limped their way to a 30-win season. With Gordon and Ryan Anderson’s contracts expiring that same summer, New Orleans was going to need to find a way to replace the perimeter shooting that they were losing.

Enter Buddy Hield. Coming off one of the most memorable collegiate seasons in recent memory, Hield — the Big 12 Player of the Year, and Wooden and Naismith Award recipient — was the perfect prospect for the Pelicans to bring in. There was some debate about whether Hield or the younger Jamal Murray of Kentucky was the better pick, but given Holiday’s status as the starter, it felt like New Orleans needed a true shooting guard and Murray was not that. Hield’s historic senior season made it easy to see him as a plug-and-play shooter.

New Orleans tried to go that route with Hield as a rookie, yet an ill-timed shooting slumped kept him from paying off for the Pelicans. Hield wouldn’ make multiple three-pointers in a game until his fifth career game. Over the first two months of his first season, Hield shot a pitiful 23.7 percent on 76 three-point attempts. However, a resurgent December where Hield shot 47.8 percent from beyond the arc looked like the beginnings of a turnaround. That turnaround wouldn’t happen in New Orleans though as Hield was moved to the Sacramento Kings in a blockbuster deal that sent DeMarcus Cousins to the Pelicans.

Hield would go on to average 15.1 points per game over the final 25 games he played in the 2016-17 season and make the All-Rookie team. Hield’s renaissance continued over the last two seasons, including last year where he averaged a career-high 20.7 points per game (shooting 42.7 percent on three-pointers and attempting 7.9 per game) as he played and started in all 82 games.

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