Killian Hayes, the leader of the French team in the World Cup?

For his third season in the NBA, Killian Hayes goes to the next level. The son of Deron Hayes, Cholet Basket was a youth prodigy who led the 2001 generation to the pinnacle of European basketball (U16 European champions in 2017) and then to the finals of the U17 World Cup in 2018. Highly rated by scouts, Maugeois later became the leading Frenchman in NBA Draft history in 2020. But his rookie season was marred by a hip injury, before the season ended in a minor fashion. tanking. In 2021-2022, he competed alongside Cade Cunningham, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and also a point guard/guard. Despite an exciting preseason, his start to the 2022-2023 season has fueled fears of a downgrade for the Pistons, especially as the Michigan franchise picks up a team again. combination protector talented Jaden Ivey during the last Draft (5th pick). Killian Hayes, mocked on social media for his performance in October (2.5 points in 17 minutes in 8 games, 17% shooting, including 13.1% 3-pointers, 2.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.3 turnovers ) continued to play a leading role in his staff and Detroit’s back lines.

From 2.5 points in October to an average of 12.1 points in December

Cade Cunningham, who underwent surgery for a stress fracture in his tibia in December, had to let Killian Hayes and Jaden Ivey share playing time. The Franco-American slowly pulled his head out of the water. A good first game in Boston on Nov. 10 (16 points on 7/12 in 22 minutes) gave him confidence. The Lakeland, Fla., native then had six other games of 10 or more points in November, which matched his monthly stats (9.8 points on 40.3% shooting, including 36 on 3.1 3-point attempts per game). .2%) increased. 2.7 rebounds, 5 assists and 1.9 free throws in 27 minutes in 15 games). His rise to power was confirmed in December (12.1 points to 42.2%, including 33.9% from 3 on 4.4 attempts per game, 3.4 rebounds, 6.6 assists and less than 29 minutes lost over 14 games 1.9 balls).

His three-match ban didn’t slow him down, quite the opposite. When he returned to action on Wednesday, January 4, he led his team to a victory over the Golden State Warriors. He broke the major league assist record (13) without throwing a ground ball. An exceptional assist/turnover ratio backs up his stellar season at this level (1.8-for-5.5), making him a master of the game at Michigan. And if he missed shots in that game (3/12), he’s recovered well since then (Friday 8/14 at San Antonio, this Sunday 11/17 vs. Philadelphia). Against the Sixers, he also attempted 8 3-pointers, a career-high 3-point range so far. It’s a sign that the work done in the offseason is paying off.

“It’s not a huge change, it’s relative to Melvin Karsenti’s microphone for BasketUSA. They (his coaches) just tweaked a few details. We did it at the end of the summer, so it took a little time to adjust because the shots you take in training are different than the shots you take in matches. There’s defense, there’s more intensity and pressure, and so on. Slowly but surely I’m adjusting and feeling better and better. »

In 2019, he was suspended by the FFBB for six weeks

Of course, his performances were not missed by the staff of the French team and the managers of the blues. Many certainties cover post 2 (Fournier, De Colo, Okobo), 3 (Batum, TLC, Fournier), 4 (Yabusele, Wembanyama, M’Baye) and 5 (Gobert, Fall, Poirier, Lessort and maybe Embiid). however, the supervisor post questions it. Thomas Heurtel was dismissed after the episode of regulation, Vincent Collet must find a new creator to share the position with defenders Andrew Albicy and Frank Ntilikina. The experience of Theo Maledon was disappointing during the last EuroBasket, in a basketball sense, but also in a human sense. If Norman is young, his goalscoring profile now differs from that of his former assistant from the generation of 2001. However, Killian Hayes has not featured for France since the 2018 U17 World Cup. In 2019, before joining German club Ulm, Florido-Maugeois turned down a call-up to the France U20 team — a competition historically despised by NBA prospects — to work out as an individual in Florida. A decision that led to his six-week suspension from the French Basketball Federation in 2019.

“Each job is special, FFBB president Jean-Pierre Ciutat justified in L’Equipe. When a player is called for the draft, we know that he will not come that summer and we accept him. But it is not good not to come when there is no reason, he said. These players have been discovered in our posts, in our centers, in our clubs , trained. FFBB invests 30 million euros a year in this area. We are preparing for the 2024 Olympics, we can’t believe that it was enough for us to come three months ago and say “I’m interested”. You have to win, participate, go through the stages, respect the form.

Killian Hayes, the star of the January 19 NBA Paris Game 2023

Two years later, still working in the off-season, Killian Hayes also turned down an invitation to become a training partner for the French team in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics at Pau. What will happen in the summer of 2023 when he is a legitimate candidate to be part of Vincent Collet’s 12 at the next World Cup in September 2023? According to our information, the football player is motivated and has already told certain members of the French national team one-on-one. Participating in this competition is all the more motivating because it will take place less than a year before the Paris Olympic Games. If his past episodes with the French national team have managed to strain some authorities, remember that the French team has been able to clean up the past of players who refused selections. Thus, Théo Maledon was indeed recalled to the Blue in June 2022, when he refused to participate in the Tokyo Olympics in order to respect the request of his franchise, the Thunder, and work in Oklahoma during the summer. Killian Hayes will undoubtedly be pressed by the French press on this matter in the next few days (Thursday, January 19), during the match between Detroit and Chicago in Paris. His opportunity to share this dream. Before rolling out to the Asian continent (Indonesia, Philippines and Japan) next September.