While the Golden State Warriors lost team legend Klay Thompson in free agency this week, the organization is reportedly nearing a trade to fill his three-point shooting void with one of the best in the NBA.
There was no bigger story in the league this week than the official end of the Warriors Big Three era after the rumors became a reality and Klay Thompson took his future Hall-of-Famer talents to the Dallas Mavericks. The move was not unexpected but still left some holes in the Golden State rotation heading into next season.
While Thompson hit a career low point in 2023-24 when he was benched due to his poor play as a starter, the 34-year-old rebounded from the setback by evolving into a star sixth man for the team. And when he was in rhythm, he was still one of the best deep-range shooters in the game. However, the Warriors may have found a player who can fill the void of the recent well-aged version of Thompson that fans have become accustomed to.
- Buddy Hield stats (2023-24): 12.2 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 3.0 APG, 0.8 SPG, 39% 3PT
On Tuesday evening, The Athletic NBA insider Shams Charania reported that the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers were in “deep discussions” and closing in on finalizing a trade that would bring elite three-point shooter Buddy Hield to Chase Center via a sign-and-trade deal.
The 31-year-old is one of the NBA’s premier three-point shooters and has set several records during his eight-year career. He was the fastest player to have 800 threes made in league history, he’s had multiple games with nine or more threes made, and recently became the third player in NBA history with 270 or more 3-pointers in back-to-back seasons.
Hield would seem like an excellent fit in the Golden State Warriors offense. The terms of a potential contract or what the Warriors would give up in the deal were not revealed in Charania’s original report.
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