After two preseason appearances, Killian Hayes has shown some flashes of what made the Detroit Pistons select him with the seventh overall pick but the 19-year-old admitted he is still adjusting to the speed and pace of the NBA game.
Hayes is averaging 5.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists with the Pistons but has struggled to shoot, converting on just 22.2% (4-of-18) of his attempts from the field. Despite the shooting woes, Pistons head coach Dwane Casey is confident Hayes will find his form while Blake Griffin came to his aide, saying it was just his second game ever in the NBA.
While Hayes attempts to snap out of his slump, he is also working toward improving his conditioning. He revealed on Tuesday that he was not fully in game shape yet, something that was surprising to him.
“The first game, I thought I was in good basketball shape but I was not,” Hayes said. “I was tired real quick so [I’m] just getting back to it. Before that, I hadn’t played for a long time so coming back to it, getting in a rhythm and getting used to playing in a game. [I] just gotta get back to it.”
Hayes has still only practiced with the Pistons for roughly two weeks now and is still in the process of adjusting to the NBA game. The Pistons have two preseason games left, which figures to serve as a tremendous opportunity for Hayes and the rest of the team to get prepared for the start of the regular season.
Casey offered positive feedback to Hayes on the adjustments he made from his first game to the second game and that will be an ongoing process throughout the year. Hayes is still getting the feel for things but has shown some promise in the early going.
Detroit returns to action on Thursday against the Washington Wizards.
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