Buddy Hield Bio
Chavano Rainer “Buddy” Hield, born December 17, 1992, is a Bahamian professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Hield played college basketball for the Oklahoma Sooners and was named the Big 12 Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016. In 2016, he won four major national player of the year awards: the John R. Wooden Award, the Naismith Award, Sporting News Player of the Year, and the Oscar Robertson Trophy. Selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the New Orleans Pelicans, Hield has since built a reputation as one of the league’s premier long-range shooters, playing for the Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, and Philadelphia 76ers before joining the Golden State Warriors.
Early Life and Background
Chavano Rainer Hield grew up in Eight Mile Rock, a coastal community west of Freeport in the West Grand Grand Bahamas district of the Bahamas. He was the fifth of seven children raised by his mother, Jackie Braynen. His mother gave him the nickname “Buddy” after Bud Bundy, a character from the television show Married… with Children.
Hield attended Jack Hayward High School in Freeport, where he was first featured by The All Bahamian Brand, a basketball magazine from the Bahamas. Even as an eighth-grader, he was rated as the best eighth grader in the country and a player to watch. He led his Jack Hayward basketball team to the championship of the Providence Holiday Tournament on a buzzer-beater and also guided the team to a Grand Bahamas High School Championship. For his high school play, he was named an All Bahamian Brand All Bahamian Selection.
After his performances in the Bahamas, Hield was recruited to attend Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, a basketball prep school near Wichita, Kansas. Former Wichita State assistant Kyle Lindsted, who was then coaching at Sunrise, recruited the 6-foot-4-inch guard. During his junior year in 2011, Hield led Sunrise Christian to the National Association of Christian Athletes national championship and was named the tournament’s MVP. As a senior in 2011–12, he averaged 22.7 points while shooting 49.1 percent in 21.0 minutes per game. Following his prep career, Hield was highly recruited and chose the Oklahoma Sooners over the Kansas Jayhawks.
Path to Basketball
As a freshman at Oklahoma, Hield scored 7.8 points per game and earned the team’s Most Inspirational Award. He became a second-team All-Big 12 selection as a sophomore, averaging 16.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. During the offseason before his junior year, Hield worked on his defense and expanded his offensive game to become a high-volume three-point shooter.
As a junior, Hield averaged 17.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game while shooting 41 percent from the field, leading Oklahoma to a 24–11 record and a Sweet 16 berth. Despite being a potential 2015 NBA draft selection, he chose to return for his senior season. He was named a first-team All-Big 12 selection and the Big 12 Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Year. Heading into his senior year, he appeared on the preseason watchlists for both the Oscar Robertson Award and the Naismith College Player of the Year.
On January 4, 2016, Hield scored a career-high 46 points in a triple-overtime loss to Kansas, earning a standing ovation from the opposing crowd and tying the record for most points scored by an opponent at Allen Fieldhouse. He was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy on February 11. Following his senior year, Hield won the John R. Wooden Award on April 7, 2016, as the best college basketball player of the 2015–16 season, after averaging 25.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game while leading the nation in made three-pointers.
Buddy Hield Career
Early Career (2016–2017)
On June 23, 2016, Buddy Hield was selected by the New Orleans Pelicans with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He signed with the team on July 22. On December 15, he recorded his best outing as a Pelican with 21 points and five three-pointers in a 102–95 victory over the Indiana Pacers. On January 3, 2017, Hield was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for December.
On February 20, 2017, the Pelicans traded Hield, along with Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway, and 2017 first- and second-round draft picks, to the Sacramento Kings for DeMarcus Cousins and Omri Casspi. Three days later, Hield made his Kings debut and scored 16 points off the bench in a 116–100 victory over the Denver Nuggets. He was later named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for March. On April 11, he set a new career high with 30 points in a 129–104 victory over the Phoenix Suns, and at season’s end he was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
Sacramento Kings Breakthrough (2017–2022)
Hield began the 2017–18 season as a starter before shifting to a bench role as the team’s sixth man after seven games. On November 25, 2017, he scored a season-high 27 points off the bench with a career-high seven three-pointers in a 97–95 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. He shot 43.1 percent from three-point range that season, ninth-best in the NBA among qualified players.
In December 2018, Hield posted a seven-game streak with 20-plus points. On January 5, 2019, he scored 32 points and hit a career-high eight three-pointers in a 127–123 loss to the Golden State Warriors. On January 19, he made an off-balance, fadeaway three-pointer just before time expired and scored 35 points in a 103–101 victory over the Detroit Pistons. On March 23, he broke the franchise season record for three-pointers with 245 made threes, surpassing Peja Stojaković’s 2003–04 mark. In April, he broke Damian Lillard’s NBA record for the most three-pointers made in a player’s first three seasons.
On October 21, 2019, Hield signed a four-year contract extension with the Kings. He later lost his starting spot to Bogdan Bogdanović, but the move produced a boost in his production. On January 27, 2020, he scored a career-high 42 points to lead Sacramento to a 133–129 overtime victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, and he dedicated the game to his idol Kobe Bryant, who had died the day before. On February 15, 2020, Hield won the Three-Point Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago, topping Devin Booker 27–26 in the final round.
On December 23, 2020, he recorded 22 points, four rebounds, and three assists with a game-winning buzzer-beating tip-in in a 124–122 overtime win against the Denver Nuggets. On February 28, 2021, Hield became the fastest player in NBA history to make 1,000 three-pointers, reaching the mark in 350 games, though the record has since been broken by Duncan Robinson.
Indiana Pacers Era (2022–2024)
On February 8, 2022, Hield, Tyrese Haliburton, and Tristan Thompson were traded to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, Domantas Sabonis, and a 2023 second-round pick. Three days later, he made his Pacers debut, starting alongside Haliburton in a 120–113 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers and recording 16 points, eight assists, and nine rebounds. On February 15, he scored a season-high 36 points on 8-of-12 three-point shooting with four assists in a 128–119 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
On December 5, 2022, Hield became the second-fastest player in NBA history to reach 1,500 career three-pointers, trailing only Stephen Curry. On December 29, with a three-pointer against the Cleveland Cavaliers just three seconds into the game, he scored the fastest field goal recorded in the NBA since the 1996–97 season, passing Hall of Famer Reggie Miller. On February 15, 2023, he hit his 230th three-pointer of the season, surpassing Reggie Miller for the most three-pointers made in a season in Pacers history. Hield and Tyrese Haliburton were both selected for the 2023 NBA Three-Point Contest, where they lost in the finals to Damian Lillard.
Before the 2023–24 season, Hield changed his jersey number from 24 to 7, the number previously worn by Jermaine O’Neal, Al Jefferson, Malcolm Brogdon, and George Hill. On February 8, 2024, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in a three-team deal involving the San Antonio Spurs. The next day, he posted 20 points and six assists in a 127–121 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Hield played in a league-high 84 games during the 2023–24 season, averaging 12.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.8 assists.
Golden State Warriors Era (2024–Present)
On July 6, 2024, Hield was traded to the Golden State Warriors in a six-team deal involving the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, and Charlotte Hornets, the NBA’s first-ever six-team transaction. He made his Warriors debut on October 23, scoring 22 points with five three-pointers and five rebounds in just 15 minutes off the bench in a 139–104 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. Two days later, he scored 27 points with seven made threes in a 127–86 victory over the Utah Jazz, totaling 12 three-pointers in his first two games with the Warriors, the most by any player in his first two games with a new team in NBA history.
Hield played in all 82 games for Golden State during the 2024–25 NBA season, posting averages of 11.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.6 assists. On May 4, 2025, he put up 33 points on nine made three-pointers in a 103–89 Game 7 win over the Houston Rockets to eliminate them in the first round. His nine threes tied Donte DiVincenzo’s record for most made three-pointers in a playoff Game 7, and his six made threes in the first half set an NBA playoff Game 7 first-half record.
Driving Style and Strengths
Buddy Hield is best known as an elite perimeter shooter with deep range and a quick release. He thrives as a movement shooter who can score in transition and in catch-and-shoot situations. His offensive identity revolves around high-volume three-point shooting, and he has set franchise and league marks for made threes at multiple stops.
Notable Events and Milestones
Hield’s signature moments include his career-high 42-point game in 2020 dedicated to Kobe Bryant, his 2020 Three-Point Contest title, his record-setting 245 made threes in 2018–19 for Sacramento, and his 33-point, nine-three performance in a 2025 Game 7 win over the Houston Rockets.
Buddy Hield Career Wins
Buddy Hield has built his reputation around three-point shooting titles, franchise records, and milestone achievements. He won the NBA Three-Point Contest in 2020 and again in 2024, was named an NBA All-Rookie First Team member in 2017, and earned consensus first-team All-American honors in 2016.
NBA Highlights
Across his NBA career, Hield has established himself among the league’s most prolific three-point shooters. He became the fastest player in NBA history to make 1,000 three-pointers and the second-fastest to reach 1,500. He set the Sacramento Kings’ single-season record for made three-pointers in 2018–19 and the Indiana Pacers’ single-season record in 2022–23. He won the NBA Three-Point Contest in 2020 and 2024 and tied the NBA playoff Game 7 record with nine made three-pointers in May 2025.
Other Performances
At the international level, Hield represented the Bahamas national team at the 2014 Centrobasket in Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico, leading the tournament with 19.8 points per game and posting a team-high 6.0 rebounds per game.
Buddy Hield Family
Family Background and Lineage
Chavano Rainer Hield was raised by his mother, Jackie Braynen, in Eight Mile Rock on Grand Bahama. He was the fifth of seven children, and his mother gave him the nickname “Buddy” after the character Bud Bundy from the television show Married… with Children.
Personal Life
Buddy Hield’s first child, a daughter, was born in 2017. In the days after Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas, he donated $105,000 to the Hurricane Dorian Relief fund and created a GoFundMe page to raise an additional $1,000,000 to help families devastated by the storm.
2025 Season Performance
During the 2024–25 NBA regular season, Buddy Hield played in all 82 games for the Golden State Warriors, averaging 11.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game. He continued to deliver elite three-point shooting in a reserve role, providing spacing and instant offense for the Warriors’ second unit.
In the 2025 playoffs, Hield delivered one of the defining moments of his career. On May 4, 2025, he erupted for 33 points on nine made three-pointers in a 103–89 Game 7 victory over the Houston Rockets, eliminating Houston in the first round. His nine made threes tied Donte DiVincenzo’s record for most made three-pointers in a playoff Game 7, and his six made threes in the first half set an NBA playoff Game 7 first-half record.
Hield’s combination of veteran experience, shooting consistency, and big-stage shot-making made him a key contributor for Golden State throughout 2025. His Game 7 performance reinforced his reputation as a clutch shooter, and his 2024 Three-Point Contest title, won in Indianapolis, added another career highlight to his résumé.