SAN FRANCISCO – Many NBA players, particularly veterans, tend to avoid identifying influences still active in the game. For anyone preparing for his ninth year in the league, it’s reasonable to feel above such idolatry.
The newest member of the Warriors doesn’t mind. Buddy Hield’s perspective, formed during a childhood high on dignity but low on finances, allows him the freedom to comfortably acknowledge those he studied.
One being his new teammate with the Warriors: Stephen Curry.
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Another being the man whose departure from the Warriors, Klay Thompson, created the void Hield projects to fill.
“Steph is one for sure. I watched Klay, too,” Hield told NBC Sports Bay Area on Thursday. “Because my shot is not over the top of the head like Ray Allen or like Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan. So, I had to watch the fluidity of their shot. Steph, Klay, maybe a little bit of Devin Booker. Anthony Morrow. Kevin Martin. I watched those guys and how they got their shot off and how I can be effective.”
Hield’s shot is his password. It granted him access to the University of Oklahoma, where as a senior he was a consensus first-team All-America in 2016 and swept the major Player of the Year awards. The shot opened the door to the NBA, where his 40-percent career 3-point shooting is third – behind only Curry and Thompson – among active players with more than 4,000 attempts.
Drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans (sixth overall), Hield was traded as a rookie to the Sacramento Kings, who in 2022 traded him to the Indiana Pacers, who last February traded him to the Philadelphia 76ers. Upon becoming an unrestricted free agent, he re-signed with Philly as part of the sign-and-trade deal that put him in Golden State.
Golden State Warriors
Hield was introduced to Bay Area media at the San Francisco State University gymnasium, where he was participating in his first Warriors Basketball Academy camp. It’s the kind of camp he has operated for years in the Bahamas, where he was born, raised and became such a hoop junkie that he created his own makeshift rim and backboard.
A ball and a hoop were a safe harbor in hardscrabble Eight Mile Rock, the largest settlement in the Grand Bahamas. Basketball was a popular sport on the island – Thompson’s father, Mychal, grew up there – and Hield turned to hoops because he loved it. And, well, also to escape the pitfalls that accompany poverty and often lead to illicit activity.
One of the first hoopers to catch Buddy’s eye was a man named Miko. He had all the goods required of greatness but made a wayward turn that resulted him selling drugs and, eventually, being shot to death.
“Guys might have had the opportunity to play basketball,” Hield said. “But the other way was for them to hustle and make money was deal drugs. They didn't have the guidance that I had from my mom and my grandmother. They put me in the right direction, to stay focused on basketball.
“I was just happy to have my mom and my grandmother to lead me the right way where I didn’t fall into that type of track.”
Hield and his six siblings were blessed with the constant presence of their mother, Jackie Swann, who was the mom most neighborhoods have – or need. Her principles bought respect from all, including those who otherwise might have persuaded Buddy into their lives.
Those guys, they never forced it on you because they always know that it was only one window,” Hield recalled. “It's only you’re dead or in jail.
“And they never forced it on the little kids. Those guys know my mom grew up there when she was young, so it was a major respect level between them. They know how my mom is a super spiritual Christian woman, so they didn't play with my mom.”
Hield, 31, is a momma’s boy. Proud of it. Her love has guided him from birth and will never leave. During part of his time at college in Oklahoma, he shared his living accommodations, including his bed, with his mother. She provided perspective and direction, a blueprint for life.
It was others, however, who provided basketball instruction. It was up to Buddy whether he followed. He has, having earned more than $100 million in his career. His contract with the Warriors is worth $37.8 million over four years, with a player option in Year 4.
The final season of Thompson’s contract, which ended in June, was worth $43.2 million.
Hield, who likely will inherit the Sixth Man role Thompson held at times last season, was asked on Thursday if he felt any “pressure” to replace a franchise legend who happens to share his Bahamian roots.
“There’s no pressure,” Hield said. “Just come and do my job. What Klay has done for this organization has been tremendous. I love Klay a lot. I’ve watched him over the years. He's special. The way he can get hot and the way he can just change the game and be the two-way player that he is, and the champion that he is.
“So, I don't look at it as pressure. I think it's fun just being in that role and seeing if I can get the same looks he got.”
The road Hield has traveled has a way of minimizing what others might consider pressure. When he says it’s “fun” to hunt buckets for the Warriors, it seems rational to believe him.