3. Killian Hayes, Point Guard
A prospect that had his draft stock floating all over the place in the last calendar year is 6-foot-5 and 215 pound French point guard Killian Hayes. This 18-year-old standout floor general spent his first two seasons playing in Europe with LNB Pro A French team Cholet. He then spent last season playing in the EuroCup, which is big for someone as young as Hayes.
In EuroCup last season, Hayes averaged 12.8 points per game, 2.3 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 1.5 steals, while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 39.1 percent from beyond the arc, and 90.7 percent from the charity stripe. Seemingly out of nowhere, Hayes became a lights out shooter against a higher level of competition overseas.
On the path that Hayes was headed down in terms of improvement to his shot selection and percentages, he was looking to get close to a 50/40/90 season before his 20th birthday.
The biggest strengths that Hayes possess are his versatile offensive arsenal and facilitating. He’s got enough athleticism to drive-and-kick to the corners with ample success since he runs really well in transition. And he excels in the pick-and-roll game. His shot creating ability is also improving at extraordinary rates.
There is a similarity that Hayes possesses with the likes of the top two point guards from the 2018 NBA Draft class, Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks and Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks. Both of those star point guards just see the game at a slower pace than everyone else. It almost seems like Hayes does too with how good of a facilitator and shot creator he can be.