When Buddy Hield joined the Warriors, he quickly found something he hadn’t felt in other stops during his career: peace.
In a sit-down with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke for “Dubs Talk,” the Golden State guard reflected on why the 2024-25 NBA season was the happiest of his basketball life and how coach Steve Kerr’s leadership played a central role.
In his exit interview last season, Hield summed up his first Warriors campaign by saying, “This is the most happy I’ve ever been playing basketball.”
Asked why Golden State has been different, Hield pointed to the trust and freedom he was given.
“They allow me to be myself,” Hield told Burke. “They allow me to be me. Previous teams I’ve been on, I wouldn’t say I was unhappy, but here it’s just a unique vibe than the rest of the teams. They allow me to express myself, and I was able to to play basketball with a lot of joy and not have to look over my shoulder.”
Before arriving in the Bay Area, Hield played for the New Orleans Pelicans, the Sacramento Kings, the Indiana Pacers and the Philadelphia 76ers, carving out a reputation as one of the league’s most reliable 3-point shooters.
In his first season with Golden State, Hield averaged 11.1 points and 1.6 assists per game, providing a steady scoring presence off the bench and spacing the floor alongside Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler.
Beyond the numbers, Hield described how the environment around him made the biggest difference.
“Everything was authentic from the coaches and the players, and it’s one situation where I just feel at peace,” Hield added.
That peace, Hield explained, stemmed from Kerr’s leadership style.
“A lot of people say that coaches are transparent,” Hield noted. “A lot of coaches are not transparent. I think Steve was just 100 percent honest, transparent from day one, and never once has Steve given me the wrong answer. He’s always been straight up with me, and that’s what I like.”
The 60-year-old coach has built his Warriors tenure on communication and trust, winning four NBA championships while managing a locker room full of stars.
Kerr, a former guard who played 15 NBA seasons and won five championships with the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs, took over Golden State in 2014. Since then, he’s guided the Warriors through one of the league’s most successful runs.
For Hield, that straight-shooting approach stood out immediately.
“As a basketball player, you love to be happy like that and love to play with that joy, and I couldn’t ask for a better year than that.”
With Kerr’s honesty and the Warriors’ support behind him, Hield enters Year 2 in Golden State not just chasing wins, but carrying the peace of mind that changed his game.
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