The Sixers desperately needed more outside shooting before Thursday's 3pm ET trade deadline.
They addressed that weakness by acquiring Buddy Hield.
Officials confirmed to NBC Sports Philadelphia on Thursday morning that the team acquired Hield in a trade with the Pacers that sent Marcus Morris Sr., Furkan Korkmaz and three second-round picks to Indiana. Ta. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN first reported these terms..
Hield, 31, has long been a production, high-level 3-point shooter. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard already ranks 22nd in NBA history with 1,842 made threes. He has a career 3-point shooting percentage of 40.1 percent.
The Sixers, who have struggled to generate offensive power in recent weeks with a severe lack of players and Joel Embiid out with a torn meniscus in his left knee, regularly allow opponents big advantages behind the arc. ing. They rank last in the NBA in three-point shooting frequency, according to Cleaning the Glass.
Hield is making 9.6 threes per 36 minutes this season, which ranks eighth in the league. He appeared in all of Indiana University's first 52 games, averaging 12.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.7 assists.
Morris and Korkmaz are both on expiring contracts. The same goes for Mr. Hield, who will make about $18.6 million this year.
Morris, 34, ended up appearing in 37 games for his hometown team. Korkmaz, who was left out of Sixers head coach Nick Nurse's full-strength rotation this season, was the team's longest-tenured player besides Embiid.
The Sixers are hoping the heel will make life a lot easier for first-time All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey as the team moves forward without its superstar big man.
In an article by Dustin Dopilak of the Indianapolis Star, Pacers point guard TJ McConnell called Hield an “underrated” “cutter, mover, passer.”
“I don't think the average person realizes how important Buddy Hield is to what we do,” McConnell said. “Even if he's not shooting the ball. The attention he brings — and they can be confusing on defense — he's the best player in the league at that. We're going to put him in the game. I love it.”
