In recent weeks, a TikTok in which Stephen Curry threw away a ball and thought Klay Thompson – Curry’s 13-year-old teammate – there, went viral in the NBA. And while there’s no question Curry misses his eternal splash brother emotionally, he hasn’t missed a beat on the court.

A big reason for this was the signing of Buddy Hield through free agency. When Thompson announced he was leaving the Golden State Warriors, the team had the wherewithal to turn his departure into a six-team sign-and-trade. As part of the deal, the Warriors received Hield from the Philadelphia 76ers, and boy has he been cooking ever since.

Buddy Hield is Klay Thompson with more pep in his step

What made Thompson so dangerous alongside Curry was how drastically her moving shots distorted the shape of the court. Hield also falls into this player archetype. In fact, he may be even more qualified for the position than Thompson these days. Only two players have hit at least 1,000 three-pointers this decade. These are Curry and of course Hield.

To top it all off, Hield came out of the gates red hot, even by his standards. Not only does he hit 50% of his triples (98th percentile), but he also attempts 13.3 per 75 possessions (100th percentile, per Dunks & Threes).

When Hield shared the floor with Curry, the Warriors were essentially unbeatable. In their 44 minutes together, the Warriors have a net rating of +55.1 (per PBP stats).

Hield won’t shoot out of downtown as quickly as he currently does. But that’s okay, because a Hield shooting regression is still pretty darn elite compared to the rest of the league. He also has a slow start in the midrange (33.3%). It is therefore facing a positive upswing that should compensate for this setback.

Although he’s only four years younger than Thompson and still on the wrong side of 30, Hield operates with significantly more vigor. This probably has to do with how well he likes it there and how well he is received by his teammates.

In any case, Hield does more than just stand behind the 3-point line and operate his personal shooting range. When the defense is enough to stop his trey or a hole opens up for him to rush through, Hield puts the ball on the deck and attacks the rim.

This has always been a problem for Thompson – at least since he missed two full years of basketball. Since then, Thompson has never ranked higher than the 29th percentile in rim attempts per 75.

This year, Thompson is currently in the 1st percentile (0.2 per 75). Hield is now in the 69th percentile (5.5 out of 75) and is finishing those attempts with a career mark (63%). Speaking of vigor, Hield (a notoriously poor defender) was much more engaged on that side of the floor. A good indicator of a player’s defensive effort is distractions. Currently, Hield is in the 80th percentile in deflections per 36 minutes (per NBA.com).

As a team, the Warriors (who rank second overall in defensive rating) rank in the 90th percentile in defensive rating (according to Cleaning the Glass) with Hield in place. Very little of this is a direct byproduct of Hield’s own performance (the Warriors had great opponent shooting luck in his minutes, and he shared over half of his minutes with venerable goaltender Draymond Green). But at least Hield isn’t wrecking the team on defense, allowing him to capitalize on his offensive wealth.

There’s less baggage with Buddy Hield than with Klay Thompson

Now there’s a chance that Hield is hitting his stride and his shooting is slipping, his finishing is regressing to his previous averages and his newfound defensive prowess is running out of steam.

But honestly, even if this prophecy comes true, it’s okay. According to Spotrac, Hield is on a four-year, $37.8 million deal (an average annual value of $9.4 million). That’s nearly $34 million less than what Thompson received from the team last year. In addition, Hield doesn’t bring all the baggage that Thompson does.

The Warriors don’t have the same history with Hield as they did with Thompson. There are no heroic Game 6 performances or joyous title runs. There is only Hield’s current production level. And if that ever fails, head coach Steve Kerr can simply sit with Hield and lean on one of the many other useful role players his team currently has on the roster (this team is incredibly strong).

And when Hield is feeling it, the Warriors can take advantage of his moving shots and closeout attacks to bolster their offensive attack.

Thompson is a legend whose great moments will forever echo in the annals of Warriors history. That will never change. But his time in Golden State had come, and now the team has a worthy successor in splash assassin-for-hire Buddy Hield.