Category: Basketball

Butler, Leonard's impact is focal point of Warriors-Clippers game originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO –The stakes will be high Sunday afternoon when the Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers meet. The incentives are similar and there is a deep mutual familiarity. Yet it’s the nascent unfamiliarity that could prove pivotal.

This is the first time since Dec. 2023, 16 months, that the Warriors will face LA star Kawhi Leonard. This is the first time ever that the Clippers will see Jimmy Butler III as a Warrior.

Each of the two veterans hope to be the difference for his team when the ball goes up at Chase Center. Coverage on NBC Sports Bay Area begins with “Warriors Pregame Live” at 11:30 p.m. PT, with tipoff scheduled for 12:30.

“It should be a Game 7 type of vibe,” Stephen Curry says.

Oh, it will be. It is circumstances such as these that led the Warriors to acquire Butler at the Feb. 6 trade deadline. If “Playoff Jimmy” still is a thing, this would be a good time to see it.

The sixth-place Warriors (48-33) are chasing victory because it would lock down the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and a guaranteed playoff berth. A loss would drop them to seventh place and into the play-in tournament.
The fifth-place Clippers (49-32) would finish no lower than fifth if they win, but could tumble as low as seventh if they lose.

The Warriors are 0-3 against the Clippers this season, and injury maintenance kept Leonard inactive for all three games. He has been a regular presence since midseason. He has played in 13 of LA’s last 15 games, averaging 25.8 points per game on 54-percent shooting from the field, including 49.2 percent from deep. Leonard is relatively new to Golden State, but he is back to playing at All-Star level.

All three of LA’s wins over Golden State came when Butler was a member of the Miami Heat. The Clippers have not faced Butler at all this season.

“They beat us three times this year,” Draymond Green concedes, “but we’re a new team.”

The Warriors were 25-26 before Butler made his debut, but since have posted a 23-7 record – 23-6 in games including Butler. He is averaging 17.5 points per game, shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 87.8 percent from the line, adding 5.8 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.

Can the addition of Butler bring an end to LA’s bullying of the Warriors?

Is Leonard’s availability enough to overcome the progress of the “new” Warriors?

The veteran forwards will see plenty of each other in the regular-season finale, and whoever has the superior individual game puts his team in position to win.

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Warriors convert forward Key to standard NBA contract originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors on Sunday converted Braxton Key from his two-way contract to a standard NBA contract, filling Golden State’s 15th and final roster spot, the team announced.

His signing makes him eligible for the playoff roster.

The Warriors did weigh options outside of the organization before landing on Key. 

Key, 28, is a 6-foot-8 center/power forward who has played 36 games in the NBA over the past four seasons. But it was his dominant play in the G League this season between the Santa Cruz Warriors and San Diego Clippers that impressed many inside Golden State, earning some high praise along the way. 

“This dude’s the best player we’ve seen in the G League this year,” Santa Cruz coach Nicholas Kerr said ahead of the Sea Dubs’ game at Chase Center on March 9. “He’s a monster defender. He can get to the rim, and he’s made shots for us so far. You can tell that he’s a gamer, too.” 

Kerr’s assessment is full of compliments celebrating a player who was both great for him, and great against him this past season. 

It’s what he said next that surprised Key later that day. 

“Maybe it’s unfair to Draymond [Green] to compare the two, because Draymond’s a four-time champion and future Hall of Famer – Braxton has some Draymond qualities,” Kerr said. 

During halftime of the Warriors’ game against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, Green was given his award for being March’s Western Conference Defensive Player of the Month. Key also was honored at halftime that same night by the same person at center court for being the G League’s Defensive Player of the Year. Key became the third player in Santa Cruz history to win the award, joining Aaron Craft and Stefhon Hannah. 

“That’s nice,” a smiling Key first said back on March 9 when told of Kerr comparing him to Green.

“I mean, that’s a Hall of Famer, Key continued. “That’s a four-time champ, that’s a Defensive Player of the Year – that’s a lot. That’s big shoes to fill. I’m definitely watching him a lot. I see myself in him for sure. Just the way he plays, and then obviously the selflessness and what he does for the team. Defensively, he’s a beast.” 

Key’s locker is directly next to Green’s. It’s not the skill of the fellow small-ball center who is the Defensive Player of the Year frontrunner that stood out most to Key when they first shared the court, but his voice. 

“The first thing I noticed yesterday at walkthrough was Draymond was talking during the film, saying ‘Let’s do this on that play, or let’s do that on that play’ against the Pistons,” Key said. “Just seeing him be vocal and all that was definitely … it’s not surprising. 

“You always hear that about him, but it woke me up.” 

In four games against Santa Cruz this season when he was playing for the Clippers’ G League affiliate, Key averaged 19.3 points on 70.5-percent shooting, 9.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocked shots. Then the Warriors swooped him up from San Diego the same day they converted Pat Spencer to an NBA contract on March 5, signing Key to a two-way contract. Key made an immediate impact with Santa Cruz. 

That same day, Key scored 30 points on 10-of-16 shooting in his Santa Cruz debut while also having 13 rebounds, one assist, three steals and a block. Key in 11 games with Santa Cruz averaged 22.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.4 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. He shot 55.4 percent from the field and 45.2 on threes. Between San Diego and Santa Cruz, Key played 33 games in the G League this season and averaged 18.4 points – on 50.5-percent shooting – 9.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.9 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. 

His 130 steals didn’t just lead the G League. They’re the third-most ever for a season in G League history.

When Santa Cruz played the Mexico City Capitanes at Chase Center, in which Golden State head coach Steve Kerr was in attendance, Key scored 19 points (9-of-13 shooting) and added eight rebounds, four assists and four steals. The Warriors coach took notice, too. 

“Braxton looks like a real NBA defender,” he said the next day. “He’s quick and athletic, and I think he’s another guy who could step in and play some minutes for us if needed.”

Key has appeared in three games for the Warriors, playing a total of 11 minutes. Fittingly, Key swiped two steals against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday in the last six minutes and 43 seconds of the Warriors’ blowout win.

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Sources: Warriors convert forward Key to standard NBA contract originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors on Sunday converted Braxton Key from his two-way contract to a standard NBA contract, filling Golden State’s 15th and final roster spot, sources told NBC Sports Bay Area.

His signing makes him eligible for the playoff roster.

The Warriors did weigh options outside of the organization before landing on Key. 

Key, 28, is a 6-foot-8 center/power forward who has played 36 games in the NBA over the past four seasons. But it was his dominant play in the G League this season between the Santa Cruz Warriors and San Diego Clippers that impressed many inside Golden State, earning some high praise along the way. 

“This dude’s the best player we’ve seen in the G League this year,” Santa Cruz coach Nicholas Kerr said ahead of the Sea Dubs’ game at Chase Center on March 9. “He’s a monster defender. He can get to the rim, and he’s made shots for us so far. You can tell that he’s a gamer, too.” 

Kerr’s assessment is full of compliments celebrating a player who was both great for him, and great against him this past season. 

It’s what he said next that surprised Key later that day. 

“Maybe it’s unfair to Draymond [Green] to compare the two, because Draymond’s a four-time champion and future Hall of Famer – Braxton has some Draymond qualities,” Kerr said. 

During halftime of the Warriors’ game against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, Green was given his award for being March’s Western Conference Defensive Player of the Month. Key also was honored at halftime that same night by the same person at center court for being the G League’s Defensive Player of the Year. Key became the third player in Santa Cruz history to win the award, joining Aaron Craft and Stefhon Hannah. 

“That’s nice,” a smiling Key first said back on March 9 when told of Kerr comparing him to Green.

“I mean, that’s a Hall of Famer, Key continued. “That’s a four-time champ, that’s a Defensive Player of the Year – that’s a lot. That’s big shoes to fill. I’m definitely watching him a lot. I see myself in him for sure. Just the way he plays, and then obviously the selflessness and what he does for the team. Defensively, he’s a beast.” 

Key’s locker is directly next to Green’s. It’s not the skill of the fellow small-ball center who is the Defensive Player of the Year frontrunner that stood out most to Key when they first shared the court, but his voice. 

“The first thing I noticed yesterday at walkthrough was Draymond was talking during the film, saying ‘Let’s do this on that play, or let’s do that on that play’ against the Pistons,” Key said. “Just seeing him be vocal and all that was definitely … it’s not surprising. 

“You always hear that about him, but it woke me up.” 

In four games against Santa Cruz this season when he was playing for the Clippers’ G League affiliate, Key averaged 19.3 points on 70.5-percent shooting, 9.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocked shots. Then the Warriors swooped him up from San Diego the same day they converted Pat Spencer to an NBA contract on March 5, signing Key to a two-way contract. Key made an immediate impact with Santa Cruz. 

That same day, Key scored 30 points on 10-of-16 shooting in his Santa Cruz debut while also having 13 rebounds, one assist, three steals and a block. Key in 11 games with Santa Cruz averaged 22.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.4 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. He shot 55.4 percent from the field and 45.2 on threes. Between San Diego and Santa Cruz, Key played 33 games in the G League this season and averaged 18.4 points – on 50.5-percent shooting – 9.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.9 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. 

His 130 steals didn’t just lead the G League. They’re the third-most ever for a season in G League history.

When Santa Cruz played the Mexico City Capitanes at Chase Center, in which Golden State head coach Steve Kerr was in attendance, Key scored 19 points (9-of-13 shooting) and added eight rebounds, four assists and four steals. The Warriors coach took notice, too. 

“Braxton looks like a real NBA defender,” he said the next day. “He’s quick and athletic, and I think he’s another guy who could step in and play some minutes for us if needed.”

Key has appeared in three games for the Warriors, playing a total of 11 minutes. Fittingly, Key swiped two steals against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday in the last six minutes and 43 seconds of the Warriors’ blowout win.

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It was the humiliating snub that saved a season.

It was the most beautiful embarrassment in Lakers history.

Dan Hurley, thank you.

Thank you for turning down $70 million from the Lakers to stay at UConn. Thank you for walking away from Hollywood to hang out in Storrs. Thank you for doing the unthinkable to a team desperate for the impossible.

Thank you for the rejection, because it was the beginning of a rebirth.

Because Dan Hurley said no, JJ Redick said yes.

Trade of the year.

Can everyone now admit that hiring JJ Redick instead of Hurley last summer has been the most important development in transforming an ordinary team into a potential champion?

Acquiring Luke Doncic was great, but it is Redick who has seamlessly integrated him into the offense.

The emergence of Austin Reaves has been fascinating, but it was Redick who enabled and empowered him.

The renewed inspiration of LeBron James has been impressive, but it’s been based on respect for Redick’s voice and his vision.

With disarming honesty, unrelenting passion and unvarnished empathy, Redick has guided the Lakers through early-season embarrassments, bonded them through midseason roster changes and now has raised their intensity just in time for a deep spring run.

Read more:LeBron James' health briefly a concern as Lakers beat Rockets to clinch No. 3 seed

“As a team, I feel like we can win a championship, to be honest with you,” said Reaves after the Lakers’ third-seed-clinching win over the Houston Rockets on Friday night. “The reason of that is, I know that everybody in the locker room believes that and has also bought into whatever your role is to help us do that.”

That belief comes from coaching, from Redick down through his top assistants, Scott Brooks and Nate McMillan, a powerful veteran braintrust that smartly and constantly connects.

“That’s why I give this coaching staff a lot of credit,” said Reaves. “They come in, they planted their system and they held guys accountable to what they asked them to do and everybody bought into that.”

The head of sales is, of course, Redick, this group curated with his cool mix of brains and humanity that has turned a team into something more closely resembling a family.

He has cried, he has scowled, he has scolded and he has unconditionally supported, and that’s just in the news conferences.

He has, honestly, made more of an impact in one season of coaching than in 15 years in uniform. On Friday I had to ask him, was coaching actually more rewarding than playing?

“Yes” he quickly said.

“Why?” I asked.

“So I’ve been trying to figure that out for the last six months, I'm not sure,” he said. “But I will say, I think anybody that was around me as a player knows how much I enjoyed the job every day and knows how grateful I was to be in the NBA every day and very grateful to have a 15-year career. I like this more.”

So the flashy former scorer has more fun guiding players than shooting over them, and who knew?

Not me. While I’m now praising him as a great hire, I must acknowledge that I was once among the loudest to fight it.

When the offer was made to Hurley to replace the fired Darvin Ham last spring, I loved the idea. I loved Hurley. I pictured the two-time NCAA defending champion lighting a fire, changing the culture, bringing his East Coast toughness to the soft confines of El Segundo.

Redick was the only other serious candidate at the time, and that I didn’t love. He had never coached anywhere beyond youth league, he had never won a championship as a sharpshooter, and he was currently best known as a TV analyst and the co-host of a podcast with LeBron James. He wasn’t qualified beyond being LeBron’s buddy, and hiring him would be a mistake that would set the franchise up for more wasted years.

Read more:Plaschke: I was wrong. Drafting Bronny James was a win for the Lakers

I was ready to welcome Hurley, writing, “No brainer. No question. No more looking. If the Lakers really think they can get him, they need to go get him.”

Then in the early days of June, Hurley stunningly turned them down, convinced by his wife, Andrea, to stay on the East Coast and pushed by his fighter’s instinct to attempt a UConn three-peat.

A couple of weeks later, the Lakers hired Redick, and most of the basketball world shuddered.

“So now it’s painfully clear that JJ doesn’t stand for Just Joking,” I wrote at the time. “So now this is real. Real unusual. Real unsettling. Real unfortunate.”

Rob Pelinka, the Lakers general manager, saw it differently

“It was just really important to us as we made this hire to find a head coach that could sit across the table from some of the smartest and best players in the world,” Pelinka said at the time. “This is the stage for those players to be able to relate to, coach, hold them accountable, lead them, inspire them. And we felt like JJ was very unique in holding all those qualities to do that.”

It turns out, and not for the first time with this unusually special team, Pelinka was right and I was wrong.

First, this season Hurley was a walking distraction at UConn, his angry sideline antics constantly grabbing the headlines and making one wonder how long would he have lasted with the Lakers before completely melting down?

Meanwhile, Redick was immediately establishing himself here with basketball smarts and superstar relatability. Barely a month into the season, he aced his first test after the Lakers endured a two-game stretch of horrible performances, getting blown out in Minnesota and Miami, the latter a 41-point loss.

“I'm embarrassed; we're all embarrassed,” he said after the Heat defeat. “It's not a game that I thought we had the right fight, the right professionalism. … There has to be some ownership on the court and I'll take all the ownership in the world. This is my team and I lead it and I'm embarrassed. But I can't physically get us organized. I can't physically be into the basketball. … I'm not blaming players … I own this, but we’re going to need some ownership on the court as well.”

In that one locker-room speech dressed as a news-conference answer, he showed his players that this cool persona can be tough and unafraid, and then he took it a step further. It was around this time he had a chat with LeBron, and the team’s most important player bought in and everyone soon followed.

A December that began with the blowouts ended with D’Angelo Russell being blown out to Brooklyn to mark the second evolution of the team. This change, besides featuring the arrival of the underrated steal of the season — Dorian Finney-Smith! — also resulted in a new bond between Redick and Reaves.

With the frustrating Russell gone, Redick became the first Lakers coach to fully entrust Reaves with the role as the team’s third option. Reaves has since played so well, that grouping of LeBron, Luka and Austin has now become one of the NBA’s Big Three.

Friday night, after casually scoring 23, Reaves glowed when I specifically asked about the impact of the new coach.

“Huge,” said Reaves. “When the Lakers hired him … I knew his IQ of the game, but obviously there was all the talks about, you know, he’s never coached at any type of high level or anything like that. Since Day 1, he’s been super professional, super locked into one goal, that’s getting the team to buy into what the coaching staff wants. He’s been huge in what he’s done, I can’t give him enough credit for what he’s done for me and the team, happy to go to war for him any day.”

With the new calendar year came new, unimaginable challenges, and Redick handled every issue as if calmly sinking a game-winning trey.

His rental home burned down in the California wildfires? Redick grew teary when first publicly recounting the trauma, but has since strongly stood aside city officials in leading the charge to rebuild the Pacific Palisades community.

His entire team culture was upended with the trading of Anthony Davis for Doncic? In his biggest win of the season, Redick somehow convinced two superstars and one budding star to each adjust their roles.

In the beginning, many worried that the players would ignore him because he had no coaching credibility. But as the season progressed it became clear, Redick is so basketball bright and communication savvy, the players couldn’t help but listen.

Nearly a year ago, much of the basketball world was pouring cold water over the idea that JJ Redick could be a successful NBA coach.

On Friday night, after their win over the Houston Rockets gave them 50 victories for only the second time in 14 seasons, that cold water was administered over his head in the locker room by his players in celebration.

Approximately eight ice buckets worth.

“I just want to apologize to Kathy (Montoya, Lakers vice president of game operations and entertainment), hopefully in the next nine days the $17,000 in damage to the carpet we can get fixed,” Redick said.

On the contrary, it’s been several years since the ground under the Lakers shoes has looked so lush and felt so solid.

“It’s a credit to our players … they’ve all participated in a winning culture,” said Redick.

A JJ Redick culture. A realistically championship culture.

Trade of the year.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Draymond admits he ‘hated' LeBron before building close relationship originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Even as longtime NBA rivals, Draymond Green and LeBron James have become the best of friends over the years — but it wasn’t always that way.

Not even close.

The Warriors forward made a recent appearance on the “Brownie and Rab Show,” where he spoke about how his relationship with the Los Angeles Lakers superstar blossomed into what it is today.

“Hell no. I hated Bron,” Green said of his early relationship with James. “We didn’t have no relationship at all. I had a relationship with [Maverick Carter] and Rich [Paul], I was really tight with [them]. 2017 All-Star [Weekend] was in New Orleans. Bron had a plane going to Anguilla. Mav, Rich, everyone was going. I hadn’t decided where I was going after that All-Star Game, so earlier that day I asked Mav, ‘Mav, where you going after the All-Star Game?’ He’s like we’re going to Anguilla. I’m like can I go? He’s like yeah you can go. I’m like you sure? He’s like yeah let me make sure there’s space on the plane.

“I don’t know if there was no space on the plane or not but I think Bron probably said I ain’t flying on that plane. He gets an entirely different plane so I can fly with them. We had two houses on Four Seasons right next to each other. I also don’t think there was two houses there before. You know why I think Mav got a whole other house? Because I think Bron said that [expletive] ain’t staying in my house.”

Draymond says he hated LeBron at first and that they had ‘no relationship at all’:

“I realized, ‘Dang, bro really just like me. He use the same lingo I use, he’s from a place just like me' and we started to build from there, but it started off hectic.”

(via Bars_podcast / IG) pic.twitter.com/Cbb54BXyvQ

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 11, 2025

Separate planes. Separate houses.

Not for long, though.

Green and James saw a lot of each other on the court, too, during those thrilling Warriors vs. Cavaliers NBA Finals matchups during James’ time with Cleveland.

Those rivalries weren’t friendly, but years later, all is forgiven.

“Bron used to be like, ‘Man, why you guys dealing with this dude?’ So just me being around Rich and Mav, me and Bron naturally ended up being around each other more. And then we started to build a relationship because I realized dang, bro is really just like me. He uses the same lingo I use. He’s from a place just like me. And we started to build from there. But it started off hectic.”

Things could return to that hectic feeling if James’ Lakers meet up with Green’s Warriors in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, which would be the case if Golden State defeats the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday.

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Celtics converting JD Davison to two-year NBA contract, per agent originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The G League MVP is getting his NBA call-up.

The Boston Celtics are converting the JD Davison’s two-way contract to a standard, two-year NBA contract, Davison’s agent told ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Davison, Drew Peterson and Miles Norris all were on two-way contracts with Boston, which had an open roster spot ahead of Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Charlotte Hornets. Converting Davison to an NBA contract fills the Celtics’ final roster spot and allows the 22-year-old guard to join Boston for its 2025 playoff run.

The Celtics made a similar move with Neemias Queta near the end of last season, converting the big man’s two-way contract to a two-year deal. Queta has appeared in 61 games this season, and Davison will have a similar opportunity to make an impact off the bench for the C’s during the 2025-26 campaign.

Davison averaged 25.1 points, 7.6 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game with the Maine Celtics during a dominant season that earned him G League MVP honors. He also participated in the Rising Stars game at NBA All-Star Weekend, helping the G League squad advance to the finals of the mini-tournament.

Davison has appeared in 15 games for Boston’s NBA club this season, averaging 5.1 minutes per contest. He’s seen action in two straight games for the C’s, however, scoring a combined two points on 1 of 7 shooting in 18 total minutes.

Warriors' Buddy Hield Experience a historic ride unlike any other originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The ballad of Buddy Hield has produced smiles, laughs, celebrations and moments of pure confusion throughout his first year in a Warriors jersey, leading to more history made by the 3-point specialist on the second-to-last game of the 2024-25 NBA regular season Friday night in Golden State’s blowout road win against the Portland Trail Blazers. 

There have been stretches of perfect jazz in unison, and instances of wind strings snapping in your eardrums. 

Earlier this week, Hield went viral for a funny exchange with coach Steve Kerr during the Warriors’ dominant win in Phoenix where Kerr jokingly introduced him to Steph Curry, “the greatest shooter in the world,” who was “wide open” but clearly not in Hield’s view. 

He’s one of Kerr’s favorite players. Ask him about Hield and you’ll get a joyous laugh. You’ll also get some instances of him likely wanting to break a clipboard, and not because of stretches where his shot went ice-cold. 

The next day when the Warriors returned home to play the San Antonio Spurs, Hield further explained the clip to NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke after his pregame shooting routine. 

“You know, the NBA didn’t play the whole video,” Hield said. “I was like, I got a strap on me too, Steve. I can shoot, too. But I think Steph was wide-open late and I didn’t see him wide-open late, so you got to pass Steph the ball. It was a funny interaction with us.”

That strap was unleashed Friday night at Moda Center while the rest of the Warriors mostly brought blanks to the arena. The Warriors missed their first five 3-point attempts before Moses Moody broke the streak with six-and-a-half minutes remaining in the first quarter. Hield didn’t connect on his first two tries, but the third time was the charm and unlocked his historically consistent rangefinder from long distance. 

Hield came into the day with 197 threes on the season, eyeing that 200 mark with only two games left in the regular season. After watching one three go through the net in the first quarter, two others followed in the final minute and a half – first to give the Warriors a one-point lead and then to extend it to four points the next possession. 

His third 3-pointer of the first quarter gave Hield 200 threes on the season, making him only the fifth player in NBA history to have seven seasons with at least 200 3-pointers, joining Curry, Klay Thompson, James Harden and Damian Lillard. That’s two NBA MVPs and four future Hall of Famers Hield now finds himself associated within the realms of shooting royalty. 

Additionally, Hield now has done so in seven straight seasons, starting back in 2018-19 when he was then on the Sacramento Kings. 

Buddy knocks down his 200th 3-pointer of the season 👌 pic.twitter.com/1lY4n6QYaD

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 12, 2025

Joining Bob Fitzgerald and Kelenna Azubuike at halftime, Hield thanked Fitz five straight times for celebrating the achievement and went into detail about his quick release. The historic 200th three was the Warriors’ offense to a tee. Hield curled off a Kevon Looney screen, caught Jimmy Butler’s pass at the top of the arc and immediately was in his shooting motion. 

“Just finding your spots and finding your rhythm,” Hield said. “When you see an opening, just get it off quick. My teammates find me in the right spots.”

Hield hasn’t been shy in saying if it weren’t for Curry, he probably wouldn’t have been picked sixth overall in the 2016 NBA Draft. As Hield was lighting it up behind the 3-point line at Oklahoma, Curry was changing the way basketball will forever be seen and played. Hield made 240 threes with a 41.3 3-point percentage in his final two years of college, the same seasons in which Curry won back-to-back MVPs. 

“I modeled my game behind the 3-point line, just trying to be as consistent as I can,” Hield said to Tim Roye on Warriors Radio after the win. “Being around Steph and watching Klay, he’s a Bahamian brother of mine, to be one of the top gunners in the league is special. Hopefully, I can do it for a few more years.”

The Warriors’ offense had little rhythm and flow, despite what the final score displayed Friday night. They shot 31.8 percent from three on a night where 44 of their 83 shot attempts were 3-pointers. Hield only made one of his next seven 3-point attempts after draining his first three. But his 16 points led the Warriors’ bench, and Hield’s four threes were a game-high for both sides. 

When the Warriors looked like the league’s best again to begin the season, Hield had the hot hand, averaging 16.2 points with a 44.2 3-point percentage in Golden State’s 12-3 start. From the first game in December through the first game in February – a 30-game stretch – Hield only averaged 9.1 points and was 59 of 192 on threes, a lowly 30.7 percent. The Warriors went 13-17 in those games.

They’re now 18-6 when he makes at least four threes. They 14-2 in the 16 games Hield has scored 18 or more points, and 20-18 in the games he has failed to score 10 or more points. He’s Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates, a mystery on most nights. He can ignite the Warriors’ wick on offense or blow out the flame from cold shooting or confounding decisions. 

Whether the Warriors win or lose, Hield’s voice will be heard in the locker room. It’s impossible to miss. He and Butler constantly trade barbs with one another and there’s bound to be laughs following Hield, one way or the other. 

“Buddy’s been incredible,” Draymond Green said to Fitzgerald and Azubuike after the win. “Obviously, we all know what he does on the court. But even off the court is bigger. The energy that he brings on a daily basis. He’s always upbeat. Brings a good vibe. Brings a good vibe to the gym, good vibe to the plane, good vibe to the hotel. Wherever we’re at, he’s always bringing a good vibe to it. Just an incredible teammate. Actually one of my favorite teammates.”

Draymond then looked off-camera to his left, catching Hield doing who knows what. 

“Look at him,” Green continued, laughing. “One of my favorite teammates I’ve ever had, and yet, he will get on your last nerve every day.”

The Buddy Hield Experience has been a ride unlike any other this season. His energy is always invited, and the Warriors have shown they believe his historic 3-point shot can help drive them down the right road. 

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