Where are they now: Nigel Hayes

A look at where Nigel Hayes has gone in his professional career

[lawrence-newsletter]It’s time for another edition of the BadgersWire “where are they now” series, this time looking at a former three-year starter for Badger basketball in Nigel Hayes.

As a Badger, Hayes did not miss a start during his final three years in Madison. The Westerville, Oh. (Whitmer) product played at Wisconsin from 2013-17, and was a part of two Final Four teams. During his senior season, Hayes averaged 14 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest while improving his efficiency by shooting 46% from the field.

Following his graduation from Wisconsin, Hayes entered the 2017 NBA draft and went undrafted. He joined the Knicks in the 2017 NBA Summer League and was eventually signed to a deal with New York. Hayes spent most of his time in New York with the Knicks G-League affiliate in Westchester.

The first NBA minutes for the former Badger came in January of 2018 when Hayes signed a 10-day contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, and saw action on January 21, 2018.

After bouncing around with the Lakers, Raptors, and Kings, the 6-8 forward decided to go global.

The former three-star recruit signed with Galatasaray in Turkey, where he found success in the 2018-19 season. In the Basketball Super League in Turkey, Hayes averaged 12.6 points per game and 5.4 rebounds per contest while also playing in the competitive EuroCup, a club competition for top teams around the continent.

In what was certainly a step up for Hayes in terms of European squads, the former Badger signed with BC Zalgiris, a Lithuanian powerhouse that is one of the oldest and strongest teams in Europe. Hayes played nearly 20 minutes per contest for the EuroLeague blue blood and averaged over seven points per game. Hayes helped Zalgiris win their tenth straight LKL (Lithuania’s top league) championship this season.

The former Badger star had quite the journey in late March when attempting to get back to the United States. Per his social media, he found himself stuck in a Frankfurt airport shutdown before finally being able to safely return home.

Hayes has made it home safe with Badger nation supporting him from afar.