Jaxson Hayes

Draft Notes

An under-recruited center who had an outstanding Freshman season for the Longhorns. Unfortunately his season was cut short by a knee injury (thankfully just a bone bruise) in the conference tournament. It remains to be seen how much he will work out for NBA teams leading up to the draft.

Hayes experienced a late growth spurt in high school and went from being a virtual unknown (and a damn good football player) to being a potential NBA lottery pick.

• Has great size and athleticism. Moves his feet well, establishes position on defense and changes ends in a hurry.
• Has very good hands and catches everything thrown his way.
• Has good touch around the rim and is starting to put it all together on the offensive end (shot 72.8% from the field and 74% from the ft line as a Freshman).
• An excellent shot blocker with natural defensive instincts. Does a good job of going vertical and contesting shots without drawing the foul. Gets off his feet quickly. Averaged 2.2 blocks in just 23 minutes per game.
• Still very raw and figuring things out on both ends of the floor.
• Shows flashes of shooting ability but isn’t yet consistent enough from mid range.

Comparisons

• Has some Hassan Whiteside in his game.
• Built like JaVale McGee but stronger and with a more advanced game.

Draft Projection

lottery pick