Buddy Hield is one of nearly two dozen players eligible for rookie-scale extensions this summer, but he’s only one of a handful whose teams should give him an extension, and the Sacramento Kings would be wise to do so — an quickly.
Last season, only five players signed rookie-scale extensions, and those deals ranged from $39 million (Justise Winslow) to $190 million (Karl-Anthony Towns). Hield isn’t eligible for a monster, KAT-type deal thanks to the “Rose Rule”, which precludes any eligible player from making a deal worth 30% of their team’s salary cap unless they made an All-NBA team or won an MVP or DPOY award.