By Shams Charania, Mark Puleo, Anthony Slater and Mike Vorkunov
After an extended recruitment process over the past few days, the Golden State Warriors secured an agreement with free-agent guard Buddy Hield, league sources said. They will acquire him in a sign-and-trade with the Philadelphia 76ers that will be expanded to five teams to make it work, league sources said.
Hield’s new contract will be a four-year deal with a starting salary of $8.7 million and a fourth-year player option. The Warriors will send a 2031 second-round pick from Dallas, received in the Klay Thompson departure, back to Philadelphia in return, rerouting it as part of the five-team deal that also includes the Charlotte Hornets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Hield is currently in Valencia, Spain, starring for the Bahamian national team, which is two wins away from a shocking Olympics bid and is coached by Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco, a helpful ally in the recruitment of Hield. It had been trending this direction for a couple days, but Hield didn’t make a final decision until after a late Wednesday night call with Steve Kerr and then a night to sleep on it.
Hield chose the Warriors because of the opportunity to win, per league sources. His suitors included the Detroit Pistons and Los Angeles Lakers.
After losing Thompson, the Warriors were in desperate search for a high-volume shooter who could open up the floor a bit more in some of their lineup combinations. That’s Hield’s specialty. Since 2017, the only player to make more 3-pointers than Hield is his new teammate, Steph Curry.
Hield, 31, averaged 12.2 points in 32 regular-season games with the Sixers, shooting 42.6 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from 3. He was acquired by Philadelphia in a deadline move with the Indiana Pacers. He holds career averages of 15.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game on 40 percent shooting from 3 since 2016-17.
Hield and Kyle Anderson will be slotted into the Thompson trade exception, generated after Thompson agreed to a three-year, $50 million deal with the Mavericks early in free agency. The Warriors have essentially replaced Thompson and Chris Paul with Hield, Anderson and De’Anthony Melton this summer.
Hield has shot over 40 percent from 3 in three seasons, most recently in 2022-23 with the Pacers. In 2020-21, he hit four 3s per game, the third most in the league.
What’s this mean for the Warriors?
They’ve remade the middle of their rotation with a trio of reliable veterans with varying skill sets. Melton, presuming health, gives them a defensive punch at the shooting guard spot next to Curry and someone able to handle the toughest perimeter defensive assignment while spacing the floor and not needing the ball in his hands. Anderson is a long-armed, smart wing who played 15 minutes per night in the Timberwolves’ playoff rotation. Hield provides the high-volume floor spacing that they just lost with Thompson walking out the door.
The Warriors are still a large move away from being considered any type of fringe contender, but they’ve sharpened up around the edges well. — Anthony Slater, Warriors beat writer
Hield was likely too pricey for 76ers
The loss of Hield deprives Philadelphia of one possible role player around its new big three, but Hield was likely too pricey anyway. He was cast out of the rotation in the playoffs last season after coming over just before the trade deadline — save for one magical quarter against the Knicks. The Sixers can use that second-round pick as another piece of ammo for whatever Daryl Morey is cooking up or will cook up. — Mike Vorkonov, NBA business reporter
Required reading
(Photo: Sarah Stier / Getty Images)