Buddy Hield on Kings Fans: '1 Minute They Like You, 1 Minute They Hate You'

Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield addressed the home crowd's reaction to the team's performance Wednesday following a 127-123 loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

When asked about fans booing the team, Hield said the following, per Kings on NBCS:

"One minute I made a three they liked me, and then one minute they hate you," Hield said. "That's how Sacramento fans are, so you gotta embrace it."

He also called the dynamic "fun" and expressed understanding for Kings fans wanting to get to the playoffs for the first time since the 2005-06 season.

The Kings were down by 15 points entering the fourth quarter of Wednesday's game, and while they battled back to outscore Dallas by 11 in the final quarter, they fell just short of completing the comeback.

Hield tied for the second-most points scored in the game with 25, but he went just 3-of-11 from three. Overall, he's on pace to match many of the career highs he set last season, as he's averaging 20.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. However, he's shooting quite a bit worse from the field, three and free-throw line (45.8/42.7/88.6 vs. 41.8/36.8/81.9).

Wednesday's loss dropped Sacramento to a disappointing 15-26 on the season, tied with the New Orleans Pelicans for the second-worst record in the Western Conference. Even so, the Kings are just four games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the final playoff spot out West.

The Kings have the longest active playoff drought in the NBA by four years over the Phoenix Suns, and among the four major North American sports leagues, only MLB's Seattle Mariners (18 years) and Miami Marlins (16 years) and the NFL's Cleveland Browns (17 years) have longer active playoff droughts than Sacramento's 13 years.

The Kings have talent in Hield, De'Aaron Fox, Richaun Holmes, Harrison Barnes, Marvin Bagley III and Bogdan Bogdanovic, but they've also had a ton of injuries and are playing under a new coach in Luke Walton. So it's not a surprise they're on pace to finish well off their 39-43 record from last season.

Hield and Sacramento will look to get back on track Saturday when they travel to Utah to face a red-hot Jazz team that has won 10 straight.