2020 NBA draft profile: International prospect Killian Hayes

NBA draft profile: Overall outlook for Killian Hayes

Killian Hayes is a work in progress but even with so much room for improvement, the kid still very talented. He’s only 19 years old and still hasn’t even grown into his body. As Hayes bulks up and learns more, he will continue to improve and conquer every challenge he seeks out.

Like any rookie not named LeBron James, a lot has to go right for things to come to fruition. He needs to be drafted by a well-run organization that needs a point guard of the future and has a history of developing young talent (sorry to all the Pistons and Knicks fans out there).

Hayes is also going to need a head coach who believes in him and allows him to play through his mistakes, and if he ends up on a team with a quality veteran point guard and starts the season coming off the bench, even better.

He’s gonna have to put on some muscle and build up his strength if he’s going to withstand the rigorous grind of an 82 game NBA season and stay relatively healthy.

He’s already proved that he is willing to study, learn, and put in the work to get better. If he can improve his 3-point shot and decrease his turnovers, Hayes has the potential to be a top-10 point guard in the league and the lead guard of a championship team.

Also, kudos to any backcourt player who can shoot close to 50 percent from the field despite shooting less than 30 percent from 3-point range, let alone a teenager.

According to NBA.com, Ben Simmons, De’Aaron Fox, and DeMar DeRozan were the only three guards to play at least 28 minutes per game and shoot at least 48 percent from the field while shooting below 30 percent from three last season. Two of the three are All-Stars, not a bad group of guys for a teenage draft prospect to be associated with.

If at worst, he can become an average 3-point shooter, Killian Hayes will be a perennial All-Star for years to come.