Buddy Hield trade rumors: Warriors land Klay Thompson replacement from 76ers

Jacob Camenker

Buddy Hield trade rumors: Warriors land Klay Thompson replacement from 76ers image

The Warriors lost Klay Thompson during the 2024 offseason after the sharpshooter spent 13 years with the franchise. It didn't take long for Golden State to land a replacement.

The Warriors have acquired Buddy Hield from the 76ers in a sign-and-trade, per The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Hield, 31, split the 2023-24 NBA season between the Pacers and 76ers. The No. 6 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft averaged 12.1 points per game over a league-best 84 regular-season games and shot a solid 38.6 percent mark from 3-point range.

Here's what to know about the trade between the Warriors and 76ers as each team reshapes its roster during the 2024 NBA offseason.

MORE: Why Klay Thompson chose Mavericks over Lakers after Warriors departure

Buddy Hield trade rumors

Warriors get:

  • G/F Buddy Hield

76ers get:

  • 2031 second round pick via Dallas Mavericks

The Warriors sent the Mavericks' 2031 second round pick to the 76ers in exchange for Hield in a sign-and-trade. As with most of these transactions, the 76ers didn't get much, but they would have gotten nothing had they let him walk in free agency. The agreement between the Dubs and Sixers represents a leg of an epic six-team deal between Golden State, Dallas, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Denver and Minnesota — the first of its kind in league history.

Hield signed a four-year contract in the process with guarantees of $21 million, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The sharpshooter will make $18 million in his first two years, while just $3 million is guaranteed in the third year. The fourth year is a player option and non-guaranteed.

The Warriors can easily fit Hield onto the roster thanks to the trade exception created by Thompson's departure. That allowed this deal to come together quickly.

It's easy to understand why the Warriors would want Hield. He serves as a like-for-like swap with Thompson and should provide Golden State with extra shooting talent alongside Stephen Curry. That will help offset the loss of Thompson without putting too much pressure on Brandin Podziemski.

As for the Sixers, they already made a couple of splash moves in free agency, signing Paul George to a max contract and giving Tyrese Maxey an extension worth over $200 million. Luxury-tax implications would have made keeping Hield costly, so offloading him and likely picking up a trade exception could prove valuable. It should allow Philadelphia to flesh out the roster beyond George, Maxey and Joel Embiid with some role players.

MORE: Full details of LeBron James' new contract with the Lakers

Buddy Hield stats

Hield has been a solid contributor during his NBA career and is one of the league's top 3-point shooters. He has made 40 percent of his career 3-point shots and once averaged 20.7 points per game — during the 2018-19 NBA season — thanks to his sharpshooting capabilities.

Beyond that, Hield has been ultra-durable. He has led the NBA in games played three times, including his career-high 84 contests between the Pacers and Sixers last season.

Below is a look at Hield's per-game and rate stats from the 2023-24 NBA season:

Points12.1
Rebounds3.2
Assists2.8
Steals0.8
Blocks0.5
Field goal %43.6
3-point %38.6
Free throw %88.1

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.