Detroit Pistons: Has Killian Hayes Changed Your Mind?

Has the Detroit Pistons first pick of the Troy Weaver era changed your mind? Selected seventh in the 2020 NBA Draft Killian Hayes kicked off the “Restore”, the teams branded rebuild. It was noted this would be a process that moves at the pace of Weaver no matter how good, or bad things may seem in a moment of restoration. But time and contracts are pushing the Pistons into making roster decisions now, despite their progress.

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Contrarily the Saddiq Bey trade was the first example as he sought a raise the Pistons weren’t ready to give at this stage of his career. It’s rumored Bey will be seeking north of $20 million dollars according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN on The Lowe Post podcast.

“…heard he was asking for insane money this upcoming summer,” Givony said. “That he would need a De’Andre Hunter type contract in order to keep him. So if that’s the case, to me he’s closer to a midlevel guy than $20-plus million per year.”

So What About Killian?

Has Killian Hayes proven to be the best solution at back up point guard? It’s undeniable he’s taken steps forward, but do economics push him out similarly to Saddiq Bey? One area of difference between the two is Hayes has shown he can play back up point guard, where Bey struggled in various attempts to achieve better results.

On the season Hayes is averaging 9.6 points, 6.1 assists, and 2.8 rebounds, but shooting under 30% from three. His shooting numbers need to improve, but overall decent stats which has earned Hayes the praise of head coach Dwane Casey.

“Killian is one of our better passers,” Casey said. “I thought he set the tone the way he was distributing the ball, finding people on time and on target. He got us some open threes to set the tone.”

Hayes is tied for 19th in assists per game and 16th in total assists, so Casey isn’t the only proof that he’s been a positive for the Pistons.

Scoot Over Hayes?

But what if the Detroit Pistons wind up with most mock draft’s number two overall pick Scoot Henderson? The confident finish strong guard is absolutely what the Pistons need whether starting or off the bench. But in a reserve role it provides Henderson the ability to just get bucks, for a lack of better phrasing. Something similar to what the Indiana Pacers did drafting Bennedict Mathurin, but bringing him off the bench behind Tyrese Haliburton. Mathurin was still received 25-35 minutes a night and played in vital moments of the game.

And then there’s the possibility of the Pistons signing a guard in free agency to play

In a scenario like this, I would still wish for Hayes to be part of this team as the 4th guard or the CoJo role. Corey Joseph is currently making just under $5.2M but providing less than Hayes, while Hayes would command more money than Joseph. The question is, just how much more?

When looking at contract, position, draft class and stat comparisons it would seem Hayes is set for a yearly contract value between $8-12 million per year. How much money do you think is fair value for Killian Hayes?