Buddy Hield brings energy and joy to the Warriors while proudly honoring his roots in the Bahamas

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Buddy Hield hollers through the locker room at Stephen Curry with some good-natured banter or cracks jokes at practice and on the team plane, by all accounts leaving everyone in hysterics.

From the moment Hield joined the Golden State Warriors last summer, he exhibited a tireless training regimen, too — one that has impressed Curry.

“He probably puts more hours in the gym than I think I’ve ever seen anybody,” Curry said.

The two-time NBA MVP is enjoying the high-energy personality, team-first dedication along with his new Warriors backcourt mate's love for his craft.

From Freeport in the Bahamas to the Bay Area, the 32-year-old Hield takes great pride in representing his island nation on the big NBA stage.

“It’s special,” Hield said. “It’s not by chance. I’ve put the work in, for sure. I’m just blessed and honored to be in this position.”

Hield is averaging 12.6 points and shooting nearly 43% from the field with the Warriors, but he also is making his presence felt off the court.

When Hield arrives anywhere with the Warriors, he offers his hellos with that signature smile and instantly lifts the spirits of his new team. It's the kind of joy and focus coach Steve Kerr has long insisted defines the Warriors franchise.

“There is nothing even-keel about him, he is all extreme happy, joy, talking all the time, and you love that energy because he loves the game,” Curry said. “... He does bring joy to the locker room, to the plane. No matter where we’re at, you’re going to hear him and he lifts everybody up because he’s got a great sense of humor and he’s been around the block. The funniest part is you just can’t get him to shut up. So you appreciate everything he brings.”

His teammates call him Buddy Love, Buddy Fresh and Buddy Buckets — the nickname Buddy has been with the shooting guard since just after his birth, as Hield's formal first name is Chavano.

Hield became the 17th player in NBA history to reach 2,000 3-pointers, and he sparks the offense with the way he runs the floor.

“I’ve just got to keep moving and hopefully I’m able to catch some of the greats," Hield said. “I probably won’t be able to catch Steph, but I hope to catch some of the greats and hopefully I can crack top-10, maybe top-five.”

That would be just fine with Kerr.

“We’re at our best when we’re playing fast and with a lot of pace, and that’s what Buddy does really well," Kerr said. “He runs the floor in transition probably better than anybody on our team.”

The Warriors (16-16) have been struggling lately, losing three of their last 10.

But you won't hear complaints from Hield, who has enjoyed an impressive run — from shooting as a youngster on a makeshift hoop that he and his brother Chevez constructed from a milk crate to helping lead Oklahoma to a Final Four in college and now as a journeyman in his ninth NBA season with a fifth different team.

"Where I came from in the Bahamas, I couldn’t write a better script than this, just being down there, shooting on an outside court, building my own court right from a crate. To have 2,000 3s, I know the young kids back home and the people that helped me get to this point will really appreciate that.

"So I’m just blessed to be in this situation.”

Hield landed with Golden State following Klay Thompson’s departure to Dallas, and it's something Bahamas teammate Thompson called “very special.”

"I’m just happy they replaced me with another Bahamian,” he said.

And Thompson certainly realizes what Hield means to the Bahamas and helping build basketball back home.

“Are you kidding me? He’s a legend, especially around Freeport. Buddy gives young men and women hope all over the nation,” Thompson said. “Especially his commitment to the national team, it’s amazing. It’s really cool.”

Hield's shooting has been inconsistent, but the Warriors are seeing everything he brings on and off the court. And that doesn't waver whether he's hitting shots or missing them, or starting or coming off the bench.

"He lifts this team every day when he comes in smiling,” guard Gary Payton II said. “I know that smile travels all the way back to the Bahamas and those kids have the same smile when he’s on the court. ... How he plays and what he does, it’s kind of like a Steph effect over there in the islands. They’re shouting Buddy. We know what he means to this team and what he means to the Bahamas.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

FILE - Golden State Warriors guard Buddy Hield controls the ball during an NBA basketball game against the New Orleans Pelicans in San Francisco, Oct. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

FILE - Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, left, greets Warriors guard Buddy Hield who comes off the court during the second half of a preseason NBA basketball game against the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento, Calif., Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Randall Benton, File)

FILE - Golden State Warriors guard Buddy Hield (7) reacts after making a 3-point basket against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the second half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar, File)

FILE - Golden State Warriors guards Buddy Hield, left, and Stephen Curry (30) celebrate as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) leaves the court during the second half of an NBA basketball game Nov. 10, 2024, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings, File)

FILE - Golden State Warriors guard Buddy Hield, left, gestures to the Minnesota Timberwolves' bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar, File)

Road conditions were deteriorating Saturday in the central U.S. as a winter storm brought a mix of snow, ice and plunging temperatures, with forecasts calling for the dreaded combo to spread eastward in the coming days.

“Winter returned,” declared Bob Oravec, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.

The polar vortex of ultra-cold air usually stays penned up around the North Pole, spinning like a top. But sometimes it escapes or stretches down to the U.S., Europe or Asia — and that’s when large numbers of people experience intense doses of cold. Studies show a fast-warming Arctic gets some of the blame for the increase in polar vortex stretching or wandering.

By Saturday evening, widespread heavy snow was likely between central Kansas and Indiana, especially along and north of Interstate 70, where there's a high chance of at least 8 inches of snow (20 centimeters). Part of the interstate was closed in central Kansas by Saturday afternoon.

The storm will then move into the Ohio Valley, where severe travel disruptions are expected. It will reach the Mid-Atlantic states on Sunday into Monday. A hard freeze is even expected as far south as Florida.

Severe thunderstorms, with the possibility of tornadoes and hail, also are possible ahead of the storm system’s cold front as it crosses the Lower Mississippi Valley, the National Weather Service warned.

A fire truck, several tractor-trailers and passenger vehicles overturned west of Salina, Kansas. Rigs also jackknifed and went into ditches, said Trooper Ben Gardner of the Kansas Highway Patrol.

He posted a video showing his boots sliding across the highway blacktop like an ice-skating rink.

“We are in it now," Gardner said as he drove to the scene of an accident. “The game has started.”

Freezing rain in Wichita, Kansas, sent authorities to multiple crashes Saturday morning. Police urged drivers to stay home if possible and watch out for emergency vehicles.

A state of emergency was declared in neighboring Missouri by Gov. Mike Parson. Whiteout conditions may make driving dangerous to impossible, forecasters warned, and heighten the risk of becoming stranded.

Stores in Wichita were filled with shoppers stocking up on groceries in advance of the storm, and warming centers opened in churches and libraries.

Several businesses closed across the Kansas City area, and the school district in suburban Independence, Missouri, announced it might need to cancel classes for one or more days.

“Get where you’re going now & stay put. If you must travel, consider packing a bag & staying where you’re headed," the Missouri Department of Transportation urged in a message on X.

The agency warned Friday that a shortage of workers could hamper the ability to clear roads.

In Ohio, crews in Columbus already treated major roadways with anti-icing liquids.

Starting Monday, hundreds of millions of people in the eastern two-thirds of the country will experience dangerous, bone-chilling air and wind chills, forecasters said. Temperatures could be 12 to 25 degrees colder than normal (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) as the polar vortex stretches down from the high Arctic.

In Chicago on Saturday, temperatures hovered in the teens (minus 7-10 Celsius) and around zero in Minneapolis (minus 18 C), while dropping to 14 below (minus 25 C) in International Falls, Minnesota, on the Canadian border.

While those cold temperatures aren't setting any records, they're causing problems nonetheless.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency Friday evening ahead of the storm, noting it could impact Virginia residents’ ability to vote in the state’s special elections on Tuesday. In a statement on X, the governor encouraged residents to vote early on Saturday in special elections before winter weather arrives.

In Maryland’s historic state capital near the Chesapeake Bay, local officials asked residents to remove vehicles from emergency snow routes in the city of Annapolis and announced plans to open several garages Sunday for complimentary parking.

The National Weather Service is forecasting 8 to 12 inches (about 20 to 30 centimeters) of snow for the Annapolis area, with temperatures remaining below freezing throughout the weekend.

In Baltimore, an extreme weather alert was issued alerting agencies to provide shelter and assistance for those in need. City officials said wind chills were expected to dip to 13 degrees overnight Saturday and remain in the teens through Tuesday.

In Louisiana, crews on land and water were racing to find a manatee that was spotted in Lake Pontchartrain before the cold temperatures hit. The manatee was first seen New Year’s Eve in the Mandeville area.

While manatees are common in the area during the summer months, winter sightings are a concern since the animals can begin to experience cold stress symptoms when the temperature gets below 68 degrees (20 Celsius).

“We are doing everything we can to get our hands on this animal,” said Gabriella Harlamert, stranding and rehab coordinator for Audubon Aquarium Rescue in New Orleans.

Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment

Hollingsworth is reporting from Mission, Kansas, and Witte in Annapolis, Maryland. Andrew DeMillo reported from Little Rock, Arkansas.

FILE - A leaf is frozen in the ice of a garden pond during cold weather in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

FILE - Steve Beckett with the street department in Owensboro, Ky., sprays a salt brine solution along Hickman Avenue in preparation for predicted snow and ice over the weekend, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky. (Greg Eans/The Messenger-Inquirer via AP, File)