Free agent Buddy Hield joined the Golden State Warriors on a two-year, $21 million sign-and-trade deal. Considering he has been a top-four 3-point shooter (3.4 per game), in the last five seasons, adding Hield would help alleviate the team. Stats and predictions aside, Warriors fans seemed to have found an entirely different reason to back his chemistry with the franchise and its star player Steph Curry.
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The hilarious, meme-worthy incident took place in March 2018, when the Sacramento Kings were in town to play the Warriors. Stephen Curry, who was sitting out the contest with an injury, was a spectator on the night but decided to help out his team by snitching to the referees on any chance he got.
And SC30 did just that when the game was tied 52 each with three minutes remaining in the first half. Hield, who was collecting a missed three by Draymond Green, fumbled the rebound and chased after the ball. Getting to it just in time, the former Sacramento guard started to sprint off once he collected the ball.
Before he could get very far, Curry and former Warriors big man JaVale McGee pointed to the spot that Hield’s foot previously stepped on, showing the refs that he was out of bounds.
Throwback to this funny Steph Curry and Buddy Hield moment😂😂
pic.twitter.com/NkkikpkB0k— TheWarriorsHouse (@GSWarriorsHouse) July 4, 2024
The exchange had the entire Warriors bench in splits as the referees responded to the Dubs snitching antics, calling the possession a turnover. The Then-Kings guard couldn’t do much but look at Curry and laugh, as he knew that the moment was worth a giggle.
Now, almost six years later, Hield has grown into one of the league’s best spot-up shooters and will be looking to take Klay Thompson’s spot in what is looking like a new and improved Warriors’ backcourt.
The Splash Buddies could help the Warriors win
The 31-year-old sharpshooting wing has hit 200-plus 3-pointers in six straight seasons with a career 3-point shooting percentage of 40% on 7.6 attempts per game, as per NBA.com. These numbers are very similar to Thompson’s production over the last few years. In hindsight, Heild seems to have been a discount signing as he has proven himself to be one of the best volume shooters in the league.
It’s also important to remember that Hield can play lock-down defense during stretches, and his new teammate Stephen Curry and he have also led the NBA in 3-pointers made, over the last five seasons, making them the deadliest three-point shooting backcourt in the league currently.
Hopefully, with Hield’s addition, the franchise might make one final run at a chip before Curry’s days as a Warrior runs out.
