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The Brooklyn Nets are in the process of rebuilding their franchise after they traded Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks for as many as five first-round picks and three players. As most rebuilding teams do, Brooklyn could soon be a team that takes chances on players who haven’t caught on in their NBA career yet.
Per Erik Slater of ClutchPoints on Monday, the Nets attended a workout for guard Killian Hayes during their time in Las Vegas for the summer league. Despite the focus of Brooklyn being in Vegas is to see how some of their own players have developed since the 2023-24 season ended, it is also an opportunity to see what other players look like as well.
Hayes, 22, was the seventh overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, but he has not lived up to the billing that comes with being drafted that high. In four seasons since coming over after playing professional basketball in Germany, Hayes has averaged 8.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 38,2% from the field and 27.7% from three-point land.
To put those numbers in context with his draft class, Hayes ranks 21st (out of 60 players) in points per game, third in assists per game, 49th in field-goal percentage, and 43rd in three-point percentage. With that being said, Hayes was waived by the Pistons in February and has not been signed by another team since.
For a team like the Nets that is focused on player development and trying to find its next core to build around, Hayes could be an interesting signing to see if he can get back to being a productive player. He’s not an efficient shooter by any means, but he has proven to be a good passer and it’s possible that he could improve enough on defense to garner playing time for a rebuilding Brooklyn squad.
The Nets are attending a workout for Killian Hayes today in Vegas, according to a source.
Hayes has averaged 8.1 points and 5.2 assists over four NBA seasons. The Pistons waived the 22-year-old midway through 2023-24.
— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) July 15, 2024