Before the Detroit Pistons finally took a big step towards relevance last season, the organization was stuck in an awful position. One of the biggest reasons for this was consistently misevaluating talent and missing out on draft prospects.
Perhaps the most obvious miss of the recent Pistons picks was Killian Hayes. The seventh-overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft had a horrendous four-season stint with the Pistons until getting waived before his rookie contract finished.
What makes matters worse is the fact that players like Deni Avdija, Devin Vassell, and, of course, Tyrese Haliburton, were selected in the subsequent five picks. Needless to say that Detroit would be in a very different place as a franchise if it had drafted any one of these three players over Hayes.
Since leaving the Pistons, things haven't gone much better for Hayes. After the 2024-25 season, Hayes' contract expired, and the 24-year-old remains unsigned in free agency.
Even though he hasn't been able to establish his NBA career so far and doesn't seem to have much of a market, Hayes isn't giving up on his dream.
Killian Hayes has been rejecting overseas offers to focus on making his return to the NBA, per @Eurohoopsnet pic.twitter.com/EEuuaghaoG
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 14, 2025
Killian Hayes' NBA Dreams Have to Come to an End Soon
Eurohoops.net reported that Hayes had significant interest from top EuroLeague teams, including Real Madrid and Anadolu Efes, but has chosen to turn down those offers. BeBasket reported that Hayes is looking to secure a training camp roster spot in the NBA.
While it's certainly possible that Hayes may be able to get a training camp contract from an NBA team, it's highly unlikely that he will get a guaranteed deal for next season. The best he can hope for is a two-way contract, which will force him to spend most of the season in the G League once again.
The French-American combo guard tried to stick around in the NBA last season, spending time between the Brooklyn Nets and their G League affiliate in Long Island. Hayes played in six games for the Eastern Conference bottom feeders and averaged 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in 27 minutes per game. While he shot better from downtown in this small sample, his efficiency struggles continued as he hit 41.9% from the field.
Hayes has good positional size, defensive chops, and enough playmaking ability to be an effective rotation player one day. However, his lack of shooting and scoring, combined with his lack of athleticism, make him a tough fit in a lot of situations. Unless he improves at an unexpected level, it is hard to see Hayes making much of an impact in the NBA any time soon.