Nets’ Head Coach Wants Killian Hayes To Let It Fly

Nets' Head Coach Jordi Fernandez sees a major area of improvement for Killian Hayes.

Feb 24, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Killian Hayes (7) shoots the ball over Washington Wizards guard Jordan Poole (13) in the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The last few weeks have been crazy for the Brooklyn Nets, with the biggest twist being that they’re in a race for a spot in the Play-In Tournament, sitting only a game and a half back from the Chicago Bulls in the tenth seed.

Another one of the twists has been the injury bug that has bit Brooklyn’s squad, with its biggest victim being D’Angelo Russell, who sprained his right ankle in a match against the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier on in the month. The void that Russell left behind as he went to the bench left Jordon Fernandez stretched to use all of his available options, which included Killian Hayes.

Hayes, prior to his 10-day contract with Brooklyn, had spent the season in the G League with the Long Island Nets, proving to be one of their biggest offensive talents. Since his call-up, Hayes has managed to become quite a consistent figure, starting in two of his three appearances so far, in which he’s averaged five points on 37 percent from the field.

Yet, his scoring output hasn’t been the main source of his contributions on the offensive end, as the Frenchman is currently averaging five assists per game, which is nearly identical to what Russell was averaging prior to his injury.

But Hayes’ playmaking wasn’t the target of Fernandez’s post-game comments following their loss against the Washington Wizards on Monday night. The Nets head coach was pleased with his play-making ability but wished he would’ve taken more attempts from beyond the arch.

”I think he did a good job sharing the basketball, the way he’s assisting is good…” explained Fernandez. “I want him to shoot more threes, three isn’t enough, and I need to see him letting it fly.”

As Fernandez noted, Hayes only attempted three shots from deep against the Cavaliers, which is close to his highest average attempts over his four years with the Detroit Pistons, with the curling coming with his 3.8 attempts per match during the 2022-23 season.

This isn’t to say that Hayes isn’t capable of putting up higher volume from downtown, as during his time with Long Island this season, he’s averaged 5.5 per game, managing to convert on 40 percent of them

With Cameron Johnson, Cam Thomas, and Russell currently sidelined, there sits a fine window of time for Hayes to continue the development of his game, which could include a higher volume of shots from three-point territory.

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