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Hayes finally started to figure things out in 2022-23, putting together his best season in the NBA. Although his shooting was once again a huge issue, he was able to up his production across the board. He rounded out the season with averages of 10.3 points, 6.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.1 three-pointers in 28.3 minutes per night. Unfortunately, he shot 37.7 percent from the floor, dragging down his overall value. While this could very well lay the platform for Hayes to become a viable standard league asset, his path to minutes is far from guaranteed. The Pistons will welcome back Cade Cunningham from injury, a fact that will certainly impact Hayes' ability to see meaningful minutes. They also drafted Ausar Thompson and brought in Monte Morris. Despite the promise, Hayes could very well find himself on the fringe of the rotation once again, meaning there is no need to draft him outside of deeper formats.
Hayes' second season was just as much of a mixed bag as his first, though he did make some meaningful improvements. What we know for sure is that he has talent as a passer and defender - 6.1 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks per 36 minutes. But his inefficiency as a scorer is hurting his ability to fully develop as a playmaker, and it keeps him off the court when his defense could be of use more often. Hayes' shooting splits of 38/26/77 resulted in just 0.93 points per shot attempt - in the 12th percentile for point guards. It's especially concerning that his three-ball won't fall since they're nearly all catch-and-shoot looks, with 93 percent of his threes being assisted. One positive note in regards to his offense, however, is his improvement as a finisher around the basket. As a percentage of his overall attempts, he took seven percent more shots at the rim, and he converted those at a 61 percent clip - a massive improvement from his 39 percent as a rookie. He also maintained proficiency from floater range, hitting 40 percent of his 133 attempts from between 4-14 feet. Plus, he drew more shooting fouls, taking 1.6 free throws per 36 minutes compared to his rookie mark of 0.9. That rate is still extremely low, but we shouldn't gloss over progress. Hayes is still quite young (hardly 21 years old), but he needs to start making progress fast. The Pistons drafted Jaden Ivey - another guard - with the No. 5 overall pick. And while developing Hayes still has organizational importance, there will still likely be pressure to also play Cory Joseph, Alec Burks, Rodney McGruder and Hamidou Diallo. It's risky to draft Hayes in standard leagues. He ranked 190th in per-game production last season. If you're a believer and need some extra assists and steals, it's justifiable with a final pick. But at this point, Hayes still remains a better option for deeper leagues and keeper/dynasty formats.
During his first season in the NBA, Hayes appeared in 26 contests and posted 6.8 points, 5.3 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.0 steals across 25.8 minutes per game. The rookie played 30-plus minutes eight times and averaged 12.4 points, 5.9 assists and 3.3 rebounds during those contests. In his second season, Hayes will be the de facto starting point guard and should garner a bigger workload if he can build upon his promising rookie season. He will likely share the majority of the playmaking duties with No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham. Detroit elected to re-sign veteran Cory Joseph and 22-year-old Saben Lee to multi-year contracts this offseason, but they won't threaten Hayes' potential unless he starts to regress. While Hayes has displayed promising traits, the biggest cause for concern has been his scoring ability in the NBA. Operating as one of Detroit's go-to players last year, the 6-foot-5 guard attempted 7.7 shots per game -- 2.8 of which were threes -- and only shot 35.3 percent from the field and 27.8 percent from distance. If he can become a reliable scorer, his potential is through the roof. Hayes is worth a flier, but expectations should be tempered until he becomes a more efficient scorer at the NBA level.
Hayes has played professionally overseas during the past three seasons, averaging 11.6 points, 5.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals last year with Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany. The 6-foot-5 lefty guard is primarily a playmaker who is great in the pick-and-roll. At 215 pounds, he can also use his size to outmuscle smaller defenders. The initial concern for Hayes will be his struggles from beyond the arc, as he shot only 29.4 percent last season. He's also not an elite athlete and isn't an especially strong defender. Still, Hayes should be expected to be a focal point of the Pistons' rebuild and should have plenty of opportunities on the court. It wouldn't be surprising if he saw near 30 minutes per game, though he'll have to initially compete with Derrick Rose for playing time.