Despite a lack of playoff experience and an inconsistent, often frustrating regular season, Buddy Hield has been a pleasant surprise for the Golden State Warriors through this postseason to date.
Hield has already put an historic playoff performance on his résumé in the last fortnight, going for 33 points on 9-of-11 3-point shooting in Game 7 of the first-round series against the Houston Rockets.
But while Hield has stepped up on the offensive end, and will continue to take an increased role in the absence of injured 2x MVP Stephen Curry, it’s actually his work on the defensive end that may be even more surprising in these playoffs.
Buddy Hield is becoming a positive defender for the Warriors
Not only has Hield never been known for his defense, he’s often been viewed as a liability on that end which has impacted his overall value as a player. There’s a reason he’s only achieved a positive plus-minus in two of his nine-year career, and while it took until last season for him to reach the playoffs.
Yet Hield has started to change that narrative in this postseason, having re-entered the starting lineup and subsequently taking far more responsibility as one of Golden State’s primary perimeter defenders.
The 32-year-old has been known to have an extremely high motor, with Curry previously labelling him a “workaholic” and “gym rat” during an interview with Monte Poole and Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area in November.
But now Hield’s starting to utilize that motor more on the defensive end, frequently finding himself up on the ball and hounding superstar guard Anthony Edwards and previously athletic Rockets youngster Jalen Green.
Hield currently ranks third on the team (minimum 10 min. average) for defensive rating so far in this playoffs, only sitting behind Draymond Green and Brandin Podziemski. It’s this contribution on the defensive end that’s making him a truly effective player, with Hield leading all Warrior players as a cumulative +31 in this postseason.
The changing narrative surrounding his defensive capabilities means Hield suddenly becomes a more important piece to Golden State over the next few years. Suddenly instead of Hield becoming a potential trade candidate as the Warriors look to upgrade the roster in the offseason, the franchise may be more inclined to deal Moses Moody whose role has almost completely dimished largely thanks to his veteran teammate.
For now the Warriors will be hoping to get a few more special performances out of Hield over the next few games, with his two-way impact needed if the franchise has any hopes of advancing to the Western Conference Finals as they find themselves down 2-1.
