Warriors' Lindy Waters III's contributions to Native American community extend beyond court

SAN FRANCISCO – The body of Lindy Waters III serves to capture the multitudes of his culture, of his history.

On the right side of his chest is a portrait of Lindy Waters, his grandfather who was renowned for his preaching and an athlete in his own right. Waters’ right leg features a portrait of Olympian Jim Thorpe, a member of the Sac & Fox Nation. In the future, Waters hopes to get a tattoo on his back by Dana Tiger, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and of Seminole and Cherokee descent.

Of all Waters’ pieces, the one that may best represent the essence of Waters is a tattoo of the word “Pao”, the name given to him by Adam Autaubo, his other grandfather, which resides on the left side of his chest. By the strict definition, the word translates to “three,” appropriate given that Waters is the third of his name. But when Autaubo gave his grandson the name, he told him that “Pao” carries an additional meaning.

Next in line.

Waters, who is from the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma and a Cherokee citizen, is one of the few NBA players of Native American descent in league history. Traded to the Warriors from the Oklahoma City Thunder in the offseason, Waters remains in search of a consistent role on a new team. But for Waters, the number of points he scores, the number of threes he makes, the number of rebounds he snatches will pale in comparison to the incalculable impact he and his family have left on their community.

“Once I started to give back somewhere around college, I started seeing people come to games and realized how inspirational the stories can be,” Waters said. “I started to take it a little more personal and put it on my shoulders to be that inspiration for a lot of people.”

Following his freshman year at Oklahoma State, Waters and his father, Lindy Waters Jr., hosted a basketball clinic for Native American children. The first session had roughly 30 to 40 kids. The second session was nearly five times the size — so many that there weren’t enough basketballs. That experience planted the seed for what would lie ahead.

In 2022, Waters officially founded the Lindy Waters III Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to helping Native American youth and Indigenous communities. Over the last two years, Waters hosted the Elevated Native Youth Tournament in Norman, Okla. Waters has talked with the Milwaukee Bucks’ MarJon Beauchamp, a descendant from the Mission Indians and La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians, about collaborating to host a basketball camp. Beauchamp, for his part, hosted the annual MarJon Beauchamp All-Native Tournament in Auburn, Wash.

Along with Beauchamp, Waters is hoping to connect with the Dallas Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving, who officially became a member of the Standing Rock Sioux in 2021. Waters has only talked with Irving’s camp so far, but he hopes that he, Beauchamp and Irving can collaborate on a nationwide event.

Along with basketball, the foundation provides culture camps and storytelling workshops. Several weeks ago, the foundation hosted its first Culture Connections camp in Norman, Okla. and invited all Native youth within the Norman Public School District, as well as non-Native youth who wanted to participate. The foundation also provides scholarships, having given away $20,000 worth last year and $18,000 this year so far.

With Waters suiting up for a new team, he and Loren plan to meet with Indigenous organizations and non-profits in the Bay Area to continue expanding their impact beyond Oklahoma. One of those organizations could very well reside in Berkeley, which became the first city to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day instead of Columbus Day.

“When Lindy was going out to play ball on reservations – and even outside Oklahoma, he was seeing that there were kids that were extremely talented but didn’t necessarily have the resources in order to succeed or know what that next step would be,” said Loren Waters, one of Waters’ three sisters and the executive director of the foundation. “We started to think about things that we didn’t have growing up and what we could provide.”

Waters, who turned 27 this summer, has already been widely celebrated for his efforts. In 2018, as a junior year at Oklahoma State, Waters was named “Indian of the Year” at the American Indian Exposition Celebration. This past March, Waters was inducted into the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame. Last season, Waters was one of five finalists for the NBA’s Social Justice Champion award.

“To be able to get that little bit of acknowledgment and be seen by that platform is amazing for me and my family,” Waters said. “It shows us that we’re doing the right things in our community, and I just want to continue to do that.”

The Waters’ collective impact as a family expands beyond the foundation. Loren, a filmmaker who initially joined the foundation in a media role, has worked on Killers of the Flower Moon, Reservation Dogs and Fancy Dance. Earlier this year, Loren released a short documentary titled ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (Meet Me at the Creek). Given the reception that Indigenous stories are receiving, Loren believes that “this is only the beginning for Indigenous stories in the mainstream.”

“I think it’s extremely important for Indigenous people to practice their sovereignty through telling our own stories and choosing what we show on screen to our audiences,” Loren said. “For so long, we’ve been misrepresented and extracted from and not had the opportunity to do that.”

One such story is “Rez Ball,” directed by Native American filmmaker Sydney Freeland, the title of the film deriving from a style of basketball developed by Native American communities and includes an appearance by former San Jose State player Analyss Benally. Waters, coincidentally enough, was asked to audition for a prominent part in the movie, but couldn’t do so because of his schedule.

Rez Ball, short for reservation ball, is defined by frenetic tempos, quick shots and high scores. Flow is prioritized; stagnation is ostracized. It’s a brand of basketball that Waters played at Native American basketball tournaments during his childhood — a brand of basketball his new team currently employs.

Waters and his father, who played at Southern Nazarene University and briefly appeared for the Houston Rockets’ Summer League team, constantly watched and dissected the Warriors during Waters’ youth. Waters has only been with Golden State for a couple months, but given the similarities to Rez Ball, the Warriors’ style of play “feels natural and feels at home for me.”

“Golden State fits the Rez Ball style of play the most out of all the NBA teams,” Waters said. “We play fast and shoot a lot of threes. Going to Indian tournaments, that’s all we used to do. We’d get the ball out of the net, throw it upcourt. The first three you get, you shoot it.”

That comfort is bringing results. Entering Sunday, Waters is averaging 11.5 points per game and has made 11-of-19 three-pointers over four preseason games. In his first preseason game, Waters scored a game-high 15 points and knocked down five three-pointers, the last of which was a game-winner.

“What I like about Lindy is that he’s more than just a shooter,” said head coach Steve Kerr. “He understands the game. He sees the pictures well, so he reacts well when the play breaks down. He has a good feel for how to generate another shot, either for himself or for a teammate. He’s very comfortable in our style.”

Despite the coaching staff’s admiration, minutes won’t be easy to come by. The Warriors feature a bevy of guards and wings who will be vying for playing time off the bench, a list that includes the recently-added Kyle Anderson, De’Anthony Melton and Buddy Hield. Regardless of how much or how little Waters, his on-court impact will pale in comparison to the impact he continues to make.

“For us as a family, it’s something that we didn’t expect to be doing, but it’s something that we want to continue to do and bring more folks into the fold to show them that this is something that definitely is needed,” Loren said.

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