The Golden State Warriors are awash with storylines right now. Is Al Horford cooked? Which Jonathan Kuminga is going to show up night to night? What voodoo do the Indiana Pacers have over the Warriors? And perhaps most importantly, the rise and fall of the team's role players on the wing.
Moses Moody is having an incredible start to the season, setting up what could be his best season as a pro. He is shooting a sizzling 42.9 percent from 3-point range on 6.2 attempts per game, is a positive defender on both guards and wings, and has finally proven himself as a no-doubt member of Steve Kerr's roation.
That is a major development for both Moody and the Warriors. He just started a new contract extension that pays him like a high-end bench wing; if he is actually a locked-in starter, as he has been at times over the last year but never consistently, that will mean a lot for the Warriors' roster construction and lineup versatility moving forward. Even if he comes off the bench, however, having a 3-and-D wing with some playmaking chops on a bargain deal is exactly what NBA teams need.
There is a downstream effect of Moody's step up, however, and it ties into another storyline for the Warriors thus far: Buddy Hield has been absolutely awful to start the season. Hield is about to turn 33 and has fallen off a cliff over the first three weeks of year.
Buddy Hield has been terrible
Hield is shooting 32.6 percent from deep, by far a career-low, and thus averaging just 7.7 points per game and 17.4 minutes. He isn't pulling down rebounds, his turnover and foul rates have gone up, and he continues to be a try-hard do-little defender. The magic of the first round of the playoffs last season has completely disappeared.
As the Warriors look at their core of players, they have reason to think they can make some noise in the Western Conference. Stephen Curry has looked like his normal All-NBA self, Jimmy Butler is great, the young "kids" are playing well, and Quinten Post in particular is balling out. Yet they are decidedly a step below the Oklahoma City Thunder in the hierarchy. Another trade may be in order.
Over the offseason, the idea of trading Buddy Hield was a dangerous one because they desperately needed his shooting in the rotation. Yet with Moses Moody shooting lights out, that need is signifcantly lessened. If the Warriors want to go after a veteran backup point guard or another center, they can use Hield as matching salary in such a move.
While he is off to a slow start, other teams will look at his relatively cheap deal and be comfortable taking him on as neutral salary; he won't be an impediment to a deal getting done. And when you add in Seth Curry being eligible to sign with the team starting today, perhaps even Hield's more modest role is being filled in behind him.
If Moody lacked the trust of the coaching staff and wasn't proving himself to be a better version of Hield, the Warriors may keep him around. He's clearly a beloved teammate and buddies (sorry) of Jimmy Butler in particular. On the court, however, his impact has never been worse.
And that may lead to the Warriors moving on from Hield thanks to Moses Moody.