NBA
Jaxson Hayes expressed his desire to want to win and felt that the Lakers offered him the best chance to do that
Zach Wolpin is an NBA and NFL expert who's been betting on the league for over three years now. Wolpin has been a fan of the NBA and has been watching for a decade and a half. He covers the latest news and stories surrounding the league daily. His passion in life is watching sports and being able to share that through his sports writing. He has written about the NBA and other sports leagues through various media outlets over the years like Sir Charles In Charge, G-Men HQ, and TAP into South Plainfield. Before he became an NBA News Writer, Wolpin attended Montclair State University where he graduated in 2021. He studied Sports Media and Writing while in school.
All posts by Zach WolpinUpdated07 Jul 2023
As a former lottery pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Jaxson Hayes has had a bumpy start to his career. The 23-year-old has not found consistency and he felt a change of scenery was the best move. Hayes signed a two-year veteran’s minimum contract with the LA Lakers this offseason. He expressed his desire to want to win and felt that the Lakers offered him the best chance to do that.
Last season with the Pelicans, Hayes played in 47 games and made two starts. He had 34 DNPs in 2022-23 and was healthy for all of those games. For one reason or another, he fell out of the rotation for New Orleans and had no desire to return.
At six-foot-eleven, Hayes offers the Lakers another big man to have in their rotation. Chances are that he’s not a day 1 starter with the Lakers, but he could work into that role. He’ll look to learn everything he can from Anthony Davis and the rest of the veterans on the Lakers roster.
“Personally for my career and just to help me win, and help whatever team I go join win, I thought that the Lakers would be the best fit for me.” Jaxson Hayes expresses the importance of winning as his reason for choosing the #LakeShow. pic.twitter.com/HrPYmKerFq
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) July 7, 2023
Jaxson Hayes signed a two-year, $4.6 million deal with the Lakers
At this point in his NBA journey, Hayes is not worried as much about the finical aspect. He made nearly $7 million last season and just north of $22 million in his career. Hayes could have gotten more money, but he wants to start winning basketball games.
That’s something the Pelicans did not do a lot of in his four seasons with the team. They had a winning record just one time in those four seasons. Additionally, the Pelicans made the playoffs once in that span. In that time, the Lakers have made the Conference Finals twice and won an NBA title.
Hayes wants to join that type of winning culture that the Lakers have created. There’s still a lot he needs to polish off if he wants to get consistent minutes with the Lakers. They also re-signed Rui Hachimura this off-season. He also has established a role with the Lakers. Something that Hayes has yet to do.
