Cleveland Cavaliers waive former lottery pick, likely to land on Charge

The Cleveland Cavaliers are waiving a former lottery pick justover a month after bringing him in for the preseason.

Killian Hayes, a former seventh overall pick by the Detroit Pistons, was released by the Cavs after spending all four preseason games with them. Hayes was on an Exhibit 10 deal.

He is expected to sign with the Cavaliers’ G League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge.

Hayes appeared in three preseason games, averaging 10 minutes per night. He proved to be productive in limited action, averaging four points per game, 1.3 assists and a steal. His shooting percentage was down, connecting on just 28% of his shots.

Ever since the Pistons drafted Hayes, he has had a hard time sticking around anywhere in the league. The Pistons released him after four years, with his best season averaging just over 10 points per game.

Last year he played just six games at the NBA level, spending time with the Brooklyn Nets. He averaged nine points per game, over five assists and three rebounds all on decent shooting numbers, a promising sign for Hayes.

The rest of the season he spent in the G-League, playing for the Long Island Nets. He played very well in 18 games there, averaging over 20 points per game on nearly 50% shooting. He also fired 41% from deep, averaging six shots per game. He averaged over five rebounds and seven assists a game, but averaged over three turnovers a night.

Still, a promising sign for one of the fastest and most athletic players in the entire NBA. 

Hayes has always been a strong defender, standing at six-foot-five as a point guard.

He has great lateral movement and can guard multiple positions. His weakness has always been his scoring. He’s been widely inefficient throughout his career, headlined by a 28 percent three point percentage so far. If he wants to make his way back to an NBA team, he needs to prove he can consistently get that number up.

Hayes was just one of three players released by the Cavaliers as they trimmed their roster for the regular season. Tristan Enaruna and Norchad Omier were also waived, and expected to join the Charge as well.

While Hayes won’t begin the season with the Cavaliers, if injuries show up in Cleveland, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Hayes as one of the first guys called up to the NBA. His performance in the G-League this year will be on team’s radars all around the NBA this season.