The Golden State Warriors moved quickly to find a new guard after losing Klay Thompson to the Dallas Mavericks in free agency, acquiring veteran Buddy Hield in a blockbuster sign-and-trade move with the Philadelphia 76ers.
As reported by Shams Charania, Mark Puleo, Anthony Slater and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic, the Warriors acquired Buddy Hield in a trade with the 76ers. He’ll receive a starting salary of $8.7 million on a four-year contract that carries an option in the last year.
According to The Athletic’s report, the Detroit Pistons and Los Angeles Lakers were also interested in Hield. But Hield felt the Warriors gave him “the opportunity to win”, and a phone call with Warriors head coach Steve Kerr helped seal the deal:
“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 a breakdown in contract negotiations with Thompson, the four-time NBA Champion signed with the reigning Western Conference champion Mavericks on a three-year contract worth $50 million.
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The Warriors finished a disappointing 46-36 last season and lost to the Sacramento Kings in their play-in game. Clearly, the front office decided that a change was needed after falling well short of a fifth title.
Golden State also waived future Hall of Famer and point guard Chris Paul, who went on to sign with the San Antonio Spurs.
The 76ers made the biggest splash of 2024 free agency by signing ex-Los Angeles Clippers superstar Paul George to a four-year contract worth $212 million. With that, the 76ers now have a new “big three” in George, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
Buddy Hield Is The Perfect Addition For The Warriors
With a difficult salary cap situation and limited trade assets, the Warriors would always have minimal options in improving their roster this offseason. So getting another elite three-point shooter in Hield to complement Stephen Curry is a tidy piece of work by the front office.
Last season, the 31-year-old Hield averaged 12.1 points per game and drilled 38.6 percent of his shots from downtown.
