It was announced by NBA Insider Shams Charania that former lottery pick Killian Hayes was given a 1-year non-guaranteed deal by the Brooklyn Nets. This was a topic of discussion by some fans as it made sense for both parties. The Nets are going into next season with the intention of tanking in an attempt to have a chance at drafting generational prospect Cooper Flagg. Hayes is a no-risk, high-reward player, Hayes being the former 7th pick in the 2020 draft by the Detroit Pistons. When drafted, Hayes was projected to be a tall Point Guard that can shoot, create off the dribble, play defense, and run pick & rolls with his passing capabilities. Only some of these skills materialized in the NBA, as Killian Hayes throughout his 4-year NBA career averaged 8.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.2 steals on an abysmal 38/28/78 shooting splits.
Hayes is 6'5" with a 6'8" wingspan. Despite being a strong on-ball defender with the ability to switch 1-3 comfortably and being one of the best pure passers in the NBA, averaging 5.2 assists and 2 turnovers during his 4-year career, Hayes was inept at putting the ball in the basket. Arguably one of the worst scorers in the NBA, Hayes possesses almost no methods of efficient scoring outside of shooting 72% in the Restricted Area in 2023-24 on a mere 25 attempts and needing to be assisted on those shots 61% of the time. Hayes also shot 43% in the Paint (non-RA) and 41% on Midrange attempts last season. Worst of all, Hayes shot 29.7% on 3s and 28% on Wide Open 3s (6+ feet of space). Last season he had a 47.4% TS, 7th percentile, one of the worst in the NBA.
Hayes’ inability to score is why the Detroit Pistons cut him from the roster, hence why the Nets were able to sign the young French guard on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract. Very rarely does a former top 10 pick get outright cut from their team and is at serious risk of being out of the NBA.
Now that we’ve gone through all the negatives, let’s look at his strengths. Hayes is a 6’5" PG that can play solid, versatile defense. In 2022-23, Hayes averaged 1.4 steals per game, 18th highest in the NBA, and he was top 20 in Steal Percentage in 2021-22 and 2022-23. Per 36 minutes, he averaged 2.6 deflections per game, ranking him in the 73rd percentile in deflections. According to Crafted NBA, Hayes forced 0.62 defensive turnovers per game, 89th percentile. While on the floor, Hayes had a Rim Defense Frequency of 45.9%, 92nd percentile. Hayes has incredible defensive upside and when the Nets have an undersized SG in Cam Thomas, having a defensive-minded guard is valuable.
As mentioned before, Hayes is a phenomenal passer. According to Crafted NBA, Hayes per 100 possessions generates 4.1 open shots for his teammates, 70th percentile. For his career, per 36 minutes he averaged 7.2 assists on 2.7 turnovers, a very strong assist-to-turnover ratio. While Hayes has many strengths, at the end of the day, scoring is the most important aspect of the game. If Hayes is unable to develop some type of efficiency in on-ball shot creation, whether it be driving to the rim or being able to hit spot-up 3s, unless Hayes can put the ball in the basket, I do not see him being on the Nets long-term.
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