Despite not winning the AP Player of the Year Award and despite getting blown off the court in his final college game, Buddy Hield was named the Naismith Player of the Year on Sunday morning, capping off a memorable senior season for the Oklahoma Sooners.
Playing against Villanova in the Final Four, a team OU had beaten by 23 points earlier in the year, Hield scored just nine points on 4-for-12 shooting, including 1-for-8 from three point land. Trailing 42-28 at the half, Hield attempted just four shots in the second half, with his one bucket coming 26-seconds into the half.
Most will say that Hield shouldn’t be judged by his final game in an Oklahoma uniform. They will accurately point out that his 29.3 points per game in the NCAA Tournament far eclipses his struggles against the Wildcats and that his legacy in Norman is safe, regardless of the ending. Others will project what this game does to his NBA Draft stock and question whether or not a player like Hield, with his propensity to go get buckets, will be affected by wilting on the biggest stage of his career.
Whichever side of the perspective you fall on, there’s no doubting Hield’s worthiness of the Naismith Player of the Year Award. There is no doubting the impact he had on the college basketball landscape this season, and no doubting how much the game will miss him as he continues his career into the professional ranks.
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