Sixers fans are seething after Buddy Hield's scorching start for Golden State

The biggest move that the Philadelphia 76ers made at the 2023-24 trade deadline saw them acquire Buddy Hield in a deal with the Indiana Pacers. At the time of the deal, it was hard to knock it from Philadelphia's perspective. In fact, it seemed fair to say that Hield was one of the more underrated additions made at the deadline.

Unfortunately for Philadelphia, it didn't pan out.

The 31-year-old sharpshooter was actually more efficient from downtown in a Sixers uniform (38.9 percent) than he was with Indiana (38.4 percent), but even at 38.9 percent (which is above-average), Hield was shooting below his career norm of above 40 percent. If he isn't shooting at an elite level, it's tough to call him a valuable player, given his below-average rebounding, passing, and defense. His one elite trait is his shooting.

With that in mind, Hield appeared in only four of Philadelphia's six playoff games and averaged just 12.7 minutes per game. He did shoot the lights out in Game 6 of that first-round series, hitting six of his nine 3-pointers and scoring 20 points in a little over 21 minutes of action, but he was rather useless the rest of the series.

To the surprise of nobody, Hield departed in free agency, joining the Golden State Warriors as part of a sign-and-trade. Early returns of Hield in Golden State have been so great to the point where Sixers fans can only watch in disgust.

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Sixers fans have reason to be frustrated following Buddy Hield's electric Warriors start

A two-game sample size is as microscopic as it gets, obviously, but so far, Buddy Hield has been one of the most efficient scorers in the young season. The Oklahoma product has averaged 24.5 points per game in the early going. Shooting 69.2 percent from the field and 75.0 percent from 3-point range. He has made 12 of his 16 attempts from beyond the arc.

What makes Hield's electric start that much more impressive is the fact that he has averaged 24.5 points per game and made six 3s per game while playing only 17.5 minutes per contest. He's averaging seven more points than minutes, which is hard to fathom.

Again, this won't last, and the sample size is microscopic, but Hield is shooting the ball a whole lot better than he did in Philadelphia. Through 32 regular season games in Philadelphia, Hield had a total of three games in which he made five 3-pointers and didn't have a single game in which he made more. Hield hit five 3s in his Warriors debut, and seven 3s two nights later in two Warriors blowout wins.

He'll slow down, but Hield is showing the kind of microwave shooter he can be after not doing that much at all with the Sixers. If he reverts back to the elite shooter he was before being sent to Philadelphia, and all indications suggest that he's going to do just that, the Warriors just got themselves a critical contributor for what they hope will be another NBA Finals run.