Post by TinyTimPig on Apr 8, 2022 11:03:37 GMT -5
Gordon Hayward
SF
6'7
210
20
Butler
Arguably the best pure shooter in the draft, Gordon Hayward led his Butler Bulldogs squad on a surprise run to the the NCAA championship where they lost to the Duke Blue Devils by just two points. With scouts' eyes on him, Hayward stood out as someone who could not only score from range, but also get his teammates involved offensively, sometimes to a fault. He's been consistently fantastic from the charity stripe, hitting over 82% of his free throws during his two college seasons. His 3-point percentage dropped from 44.8% as a freshman to just 29.4% as a sophomore as opponents really tightened up on him behind the arc, but scouts aren't worried about his ability to hit from range at the next level.
Hayward is a very good rebounder for his position - particularly on the offensive glass - averaging 8.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore. He got away with intelligence and positioning overcoming his low strength in college but scouts are skeptical he'll be able to be move than average in the pros without some serious time in the weight room. One of the bigger knocks on Hayward has been his lack of aggression and unwillingness to try and take games over. He doesn't feature a developed post game and will need work there to become a top scoring option. A competent ball-handler, scouts sometimes wish he'd use those talents to create opportunities off the dribble, but he just hasn't shown that desire to this point.
An engineering major, Hayward is an intelligent young man and could have options outside of TMBSL. Despite being young, scouts aren't convinced of his potential as they're not sure of his drive to be great.
