Hughes would enjoy brief success both on and off the court as an emerging star in Oakland, Ca. He would host philanthropic events such as a gas giveaway where he pumped gas for local residents as well as be honored by the city by a mural depicting he and teamate Antawn Jamison being featured on a downtown high rise building.

However, after 2.5 injury plagued, and unsuccessful seasons Golden State did not match an offer from the Washington Wizards to Hughes a restricted free agent. It is ironic that Golden State attempted to convert Hughes into a full time point guard to play alongside recent draft pick Jason Richardson much like how the Cleveland Cavaliers are currently using Hughes. Also, irony can be found in Gilbert Arenas taking Hughes starting position. This displaced Hughes and established Arenas as a creditable point guard and emerging star.

In 2.5 seasons Hughes posted the following statistics as a member of the Golden State Warriors. G GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% OFF DEF RPG APG SPG BPG TO PF PPG
99-00 GSW 32 32 40.8 0.389 0.243 0.736 1.9 4.0 5.9 4.1 1.9 0.5 3.13 3.00 22.7
00-01 GSW 50 45 36.9 0.383 0.187 0.766 1.5 4.0 5.5 4.5 1.9 0.6 3.04 2.90 16.5
01-02 GSW 73 56 28.1 0.423 0.194 0.737 1.1 2.2 3.4 4.3 1.5 0.3 2.34 2.10 12.3

Though Hughes scored, distributed the ball, and rebounded well his shooting remained erratic, and his decision making needed improvement. However, in his final season Hughes would garner praise for his maturity as a player from his biggest critic Larry Brown. Hughes would opt not to resign with the Philadelphia 76'ers and head to the nation's capital to joint the Washington Wizards.