Chavano Rainer Hield or simply Buddy Hield is a Bahamian professional basketball player for the Indian Pacers in the NBA.
Buddy Hield was traded to the Indiana Pacers in 2022 along with teammate Tyrese Haliburton.
Buddy Hield was born December 17, 1992.
Hield was selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the New Orleans Pelicans and was traded to the Sacramento Kings in 2017.
Early Life
Buddy Hield grew up in the Bahamas’ West Grand Bahama area, in Eight Mile Rock, a coastal region west of Freeport.
He was the fifth of Jackie Braynen’s seven children.
On how he received his nickname “Buddy”, his mum gave him that after Bud Bundy of the sitcom Married… with Children, a 1997 American sitcom.
Career
Buddy Hield shown his early aptitude to lead his squad by leading his Jack Hayward High School basketball team to the Providence Holiday Tournament victory on a buzzer-beater and then to the Grand Bahamas High School Championships.
Buddy Hield was named an All Bahamian Brand All Bahamian Selection for his achievements.
After his performances in The Bahamas, Hield was recruited to attend Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, a basketball prep school in a suburb of Wichita, Kansas.
He led the team to the National Association of Christian Athletes national championship, getting named the MVP of the tourney.
After such performances he was heavily scouted by colleges but finally chose to represent Oklahoma.
He became more of a three-point Specialist at Oklahoma Sooners and more importantly worked on his defense as a player there.
He was a First Team All-Big 12 selection and was named Big 12 Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Year.
Hield earned the John R. Wooden Award as the top collegiate basketball player for the 2015–16 season on April 7, 2016, after averaging 25 points, 5.7 rebounds, two assists per game, and leading the nation in three-point shooting.
The New Orleans Pelicans selected Hield with the sixth overall choice in the 2016 NBA draft on June 23, 2016.
He signed with the Pelicans on July 22, 2016.
He had his greatest game as a Pelican on December 15, 2016, when he scored 21 points and hit five three-pointers in a 102–95 win over the Indiana Pacers.
He was selected Western Conference Rookie of the Month for December on January 3, 2017.
At the end of the 2016-17 season he was traded to the Sacramento Kings along with Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway and 2017 first-round and second-round draft picks for DeMarcus Cousins and Omri Casspi.
Hield shot 43.1 percent from 3-point range in 2017–18, which placed him ninth in the NBA among players in that category.
In a 112–103 win over the Suns on March 23, he had 25 points and set the franchise season record for 3-pointers.
He made 7 of 14 3-point attempts, giving him 245 for the season, breaking Peja Stojakovi’s previous high of 240 set in 2003–04.
He set the NBA record (599) for most 3-pointers made in a player’s first three seasons in April, a record previously held by Damian Lillard.
Trade to the Indiana Pacers
On February 8, 2022, Hield, Tyrese Haliburton, and Tristan Thompson were traded to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and Domantas Sabonis, and a 2023 second-round pick.
Three days later, Buddy Hield made his debut for the Pacers, starting alongside Haliburton in a 120–113 loss Indiana Pacers Cleveland Cavaliers, almost recording a triple double with 16 points, eight assists and nine rebounds.
On February 15, 2022, Hield scored a season-high 36 points while dishing out four assists in a 128–119 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Lakers Rumours
The Kings were reportedly working on a deal to send Hield to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for forwards Kyle Kuzma and Montrezl Harrell, according to reports.
The deal fell through when the Lakers traded Kuzma and Harrell to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Russell Westbrook.
What is his Age?
Indiana Pacers player Buddy is 29 years old now.
What College did Buddy attend?
Buddy Hield went to the University of Oklahoma.
Contract
Buddy Hield signed a four-year, $94 million contract extension before the start of the season.
Donation
Buddy Hield donated $105,000 to the Hurricane Dorian Relief Fund in the days following Hurricane Dorian’s landfall in the Bahamas, and he set up a GoFundMe campaign to assist raise an additional $1,000,000 to help families affected by the storm.
