By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

LESS than two months before the start of the 79th National Basketball Association (NBA) regular season, Chavano “Buddy” Hield returned home to give back to the youth of Grand Bahama and New Providence. 

The Buddy Hield Foundation offered a one-of-a-kind experience to the Bahamian community last week in efforts to foster youth development and build the community.  

While on home soil, Tribune Sports caught up with the three-point specialist who gave his thoughts on what it means to pour into the youth of The Bahamas.

“It feels good seeing these little boys everyday. There is a new youth wave coming in and they are inspired to play basketball and they want to chase the hoop dream that can change their lives forever. 

“I am here to pass on the little bit of knowledge I know to help these boys apply it to their games here in The Bahamas or when they get to school in the states. Hopefully, I can serve as a role model or spark plug for them to spark their careers in the right direction,” Hield said.

“Buddy” returned to his roots down in Eight Mile Rock to host a basketball camp from August 20-21 along with a family fun day and giveaway at the Pinedale Park last Thursday. He then commuted to the capital to work along with aspiring basketball players over the weekend and was happy to give back.

According to the former three-point champion, it is a very humbling feeling to go from being a student to being a teacher at camps.

“Being more mature and seeing how undisciplined I was as a kid and now I have to know how to deliver the message better to the kids that are here. I try to find a way to deliver it in the right way where they can understand it. Sometimes you wanna get emotional at times but these kids know I love them a lot and I want to see them succeed.

“Hopefully, one day they can all one day figure it out because being an athlete is tough and everybody is not going to make it but I am just happy that I can be here and just give back to them,” the NBA veteran said.

The eight-year NBA pro guard is coming off a very busy summer. He teamed up with NBA players Eric “EJ” Gordon and Deandre Ayton in a bid to become the first Bahamian sports team to qualify for the Olympics at the 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Valencia, Spain. 

Ultimately, The Bahamas came one game shy of qualifying due to a 86-78 loss to the host country in the finals.

Despite all of that, the Golden State Warriors newcomer is expecting The Bahamas to bounce back in the next four years for the LA Summer Olympic Games.

“It is really a lot of buzz there. We were a couple of possessions away from finishing and getting to the Olympic stage and being at the highest level in the world. There are a lot of guys that have paved the way for a long time to put us in this position so we just gotta keep chipping away. We have four more years at it and I think that we will be ready in four years” he said.

Hield is now preparing to start his 2024-25 season with the Warriors, starting with training camp which begins on October 1 for the decorated NBA organisation.