Sharpshooting Bahamian Buddy Hield expressed excitement at the opportunity to play for the Golden State Warriors in his first interaction with Warriors media on Thursday.
The 31-year-old joined the seven-time NBA Champions through a sign-and-trade with the Philadelphia 76ers in early July.
The Warriors will be the fifth team Hield has represented since being drafted sixth overall by the New Orleans Pelicans in the 2016 NBA Draft.
“Excited! Excited for the opportunity to come in here and learn from great players, a great organization, great coach, and be a sponge and an open book to everybody around me,” was Hield’s response to a question about his emotions heading into his first season in San Francisco.
Hield was brought in by the Warriors as a like-for-like replacement for franchise legend Klay Thompson who left for the Dallas Mavericks in Free Agency after 13 seasons and four titles with the Warriors.
The Bahamian says he isn’t feeling the pressure of trying to replicate what Thompson gave the Warriors.
“There’s no pressure, I just have to come and do my job. What Klay has done for this organization has been tremendous. I love Klay a lot and I watched him over the years and he’s special,” he said.
“The way he can get hot and change the game as a two-way player. I think it’s fun being in that role,” he added.
One of the hallmarks of the Warriors during their run of dominance in the Steph Curry-Draymond Green-Klay Thompson era has been their complicated offensive scheme.
Hield believes practice is the key to learning where he fits into the offense quickly.
“Taking it day by day in practice, watching a lot of film. Practice will be really important. I’ve watched these guys play since college. Even in the pros when they play, they’re always a fun team to watch,” he said.
“I think it’s a great fit and it shouldn’t be that hard but everything takes time,” he added.
Bradley Jacks is a budding journalist and an avid sports fan. His love of research and sports has led him to SportsMax.tv, a place where those passions work hand in hand to allow him to produce content.
Clippers trading Westbrook to Jazz, clearing move for guard to join Nuggets
Russell Westbrook is on the move once again, but isn't yet at his final destination.
The Los Angeles Clippers agreed to send Westbrook to the Utah Jazz on Thursday, as part of a sign-and-trade deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The Jazz are expected to reach a contract buyout agreement with Westbrook, opening the door for him to join the Denver Nuggets.
Denver will be the sixth team Westbrook has played for in the last seven seasons.
To complete the trade, Utah will also receive a swap of second-round draft picks and cash from Los Angeles, while shipping guard Kris Dunn to the Clippers.
The 35-year-old Westbrook was named the NBA MVP in 2016-17, averaging a career-high 31.6 points, along with 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists.
In 2023-24 for the Clippers, he averaged career lows of 11.1 points and 4.5 assists with 5 boards. He came off the bench in 57 of the 68 games he played, shooting 27.3 per cent from 3-point range - the second-lowest mark among the 226 players with at least 150 attempts from beyond the arc.
The Nuggets still believe he can provide depth off the bench and help them make another run at a title after being eliminated in the Western Conference semi-finals in May.
The Clippers were ousted by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round, with Westbrook averaging 6.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists in the six play-off games.
In 1,162 games in a 16-year career, Westbrook has averages of 21.7 points, 8.1 assists and 7.1 rebounds. His 199 career triple-doubles are the most in NBA history.
Dunn has career averages of 7.9 points, 4.2 assists and 3.3 boards since being drafted fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2016.
In starting 32 of 66 games for the Jazz last season, the 30-year-old Dunn averaged 5.4 points, 3.8 assists and 2.9 rebounds.
Mavs confident Irving will be fit for start of NBA season after hand surgery
Kyrie Irving has undergone surgery on a broken hand, but is expected to be fit for the start of next season.
Irving was part of the Dallas Mavericks team that reached the NBA Finals, only to go down to the dominant Boston Celtics.
The 32-year-old sustained his injury while training earlier in July, and has now gone through surgery to fix the issue.
Posting on X, Irving wrote: "Tribe, Thank you for all the messages and prayers. God truly knew that I needed to take a break from basketball after the long season and give myself some time to heal.
"I am in love with getting better at my craft, but now I must rest and recover."
While the Mavs did not confirm a timetable for Irving's return, it has been reported he is anticipated to return to action in around two and a half months.
The 2024-25 season is set to begin in October.
Irving averaged 25.6 points per game in the regular season across 2023-24.
The Mavs have brought in Klay Thompson as a free agent this off-season.
The Open: McIlroy looking to respond after Nadal and Jordan support following Pinehurst setback
Rory McIlroy insists his U.S. Open capitulation is behind him as he aims to respond at The Open Championship, backed by support from two sporting stars.
The Northern Irishman collapsed in remarkable fashion at Pinehurst, missing two simple putts as Bryson DeChambeau sneaked in to profit and win the major.
Spanish tennis great Rafael Nadal and NBA legend Michael Jordan both reached out to McIlroy in the aftermath of that disappointment.
The 35-year-old has now racked up four runners-up finishes in majors since his last such victory at the PGA Championship in 2014.
Yet McIlroy is intent on responding when The Open returns at Royal Troon this week.
"Rafa Nadal and Michael Jordan," McIlroy told The Guardian. "Two of the most unbelievable competitors that have ever been in sport.
"MJ was maybe the first person to text me after I missed the putt on the 18th but both of them got in touch very, very quickly. They just told me to keep going. MJ reminded me of how many game-winning shots he missed. Really nice."
The four-time major champion scored bogeys on three of his final four holes during his U.S. Open downfall.
"Was it a great opportunity to win a major? Absolutely," McIlroy added of his short-putting nightmare. "It hurt and in the moment it was tough, terrible.
"I'd say people would be surprised to see how quickly I got over it and moved on."
McIlroy subsequently took a short break before returning at the Scottish Open last week, finishing tied for fourth place at the Renaissance Club.
"Maybe the one drawback from me not talking [to media] afterwards was that you got three weeks of speculation," McIlroy said, referring to his swift exit at Pinehurst.
"He should have done this, should have done that but we will never know because he didn't say. I trust the people around me. I don't need to go looking for external counsel.
"If the tournament ended after 68 holes, people would be calling me the best golfer in the world. You have to be an eternal optimist. Say you play 25 events a year and win three of those. You are one of the best players in history. We lose way more than we win.
"Yes, I was in a great winning position and should have won but it's not the first time I have let something slip away. It's probably not going to be the last.
"You have to look at it on the continuum. It was tough but it is one tournament, I play 23-25 per year. You have to keep going.
"The great thing about this game is you have an opportunity to get back on the horse right after a tough loss. You try to learn from it and do better next time."
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