What differentiates Killian Hayes from Theo Maledon? One had a wonderful night, while the other simply did not spend the night. A handful of hours after his counterpart was cut by the Rockets, Killian looked his best on Tuesday for the Thunder’s preseason reception. We pour ourselves a green tea, just to open our eyes a little, and we look at it.
The pretty homemade boxscore is HERE!
In a sense, Theo Maledon’s ousting sounded like a good memo. We sometimes forget that Americans don’t really care about the bottom line, that stats rule their world, and that not being concretely bad – thus better than others – does not in any way guarantee a spot in a NBA rotation. Not necessarily thundering about last season with the Pistons, Killian Hayes gladly takes this kind of reminder. This Tuesday, he even translated this awareness into a great pre-season performance, one week before the start of the regular season. For the reception of the Thunder, Kiki sent 20 points at 8/13 shooting including 4/6 from 3-pointers and 7 assists in 27 minutes of play. On April 1st – without any valve – the child from Cholet already set his career record with 26 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 5 steals against… the Thunder. We now know that blue is the color that makes Killian want to dig up the ancestors of his defenders to play them one-on-one. That night, Killian finished with the best mark (20) and best overall percentage (62%) on his team. We haven’t checked – and we think there’s absolutely no need to do so – but this must be the first time that he has combined these two achievements in a single meeting since his selection in 7th position in the League. Draft 2020 by the Pistons. In 92 NBA games, Killian got into the annoying habit of scoring with trash. Conversely, if his ball does not find the way to the nylon, it is clean in the other sectors of the game. A somewhat simplistic summary which has the merit of illustrating why Killian Hayes is not yet considered a 7th choice « rentable »despite obvious offensive qualities shown too much… alternately.
.@iam_killian cooked em with the left???????? pic.twitter.com/Ew6LmQfQqw
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) October 12, 2022
That left hand, that damn left hand. On one of his big nights, Killian could drive absolutely any defender, shoulder him aside and then finish with a left hand. An increasingly instinctive sequence that we hope to witness in a week, for the reception of the Magic, the first game of the regular Pistons. In addition to the beautiful promises dispersed by Killian on leaving the bench, Ousmane Dieng also showed up with 13 points at 5/6 shooting including… 3/3 from the parking lot. The Thunder won, fuck it, but the tricolor freak cooked the Pistons on several of his offensives. We saw poor Jaden Ivey (11 points at 4/12 shooting) discover what the kid from Villeneuve-sur-Lot was warming up to. Well-placed hesitations, a clinical finish, a body that does not break down in the air and above all, patience. No need to run around the racket as if the Australian Championship would catch up with him, his ball handling is rhythmic and the possessions made coherent. “We know you TrashTalk, full of good qualifiers for him to finally sign with ASVEL after two sluggish seasons in the NBA”. For once, the project really does not seem to take this path. And what is wonderful is that we dare to say this after five pre-season games. We definitely never learn from our mistakes.
Ousmane Dieng flies by Jaden Ivey then has a ridiculous finish at the rim… pic.twitter.com/9hXfhGCmiT
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 12, 2022
