Detroit Pistons: Why October will be a huge month for Killian Hayes

Killian Hayes is entering the most important season of his young career with the Detroit Pistons.

The 21-year-old guard has definitely shown flashes, but still hasn’t progressed enough (yet) on the offensive end to be considered a certainty when it comes his long-term future with the team, especially now that the Pistons have drafted dynamic guard Jaden Ivey.

Killian Hayes is also potentially up against a roster crunch, as the Pistons have 19 players under contract for next season.

After it was revealed that Rodney McGruder’s contract was fully guaranteed, the Pistons will have one more player than spots available on the roster, assuming they buy out or trade Kemba Walker.

That certainly doesn’t mean Hayes is on the way out by any means, and the Detroit Pistons may still have him inked into the long-term plans. The team is also privy to behind-the-scenes improvement that fans aren’t, so we don’t really know where they stand on Killian as part of the core.

But Hayes doesn’t have long to impress, as the Detroit Pistons will have to make a decision on his future very soon.

Detroit Pistons: October and Killian Hayes

The Pistons have obviously already picked up Killian Hayes’ option for next season and he will make $5.8 million, likely as a backup point guard off the bench.

That is not a bad price tag for a bench guard if Hayes makes an impact, but the season after that it gets a little less cost effective.

Hayes is due $7.4 million for the 2023-24 season, but it is a team option that the Pistons will have to exercise.

The team will have to make their decision by October 31st, and if they don’t, Killian Hayes will likely play out the final year of his contract and become a restricted free agent. If Hayes shows improvement before then, you can be certain that option will be exercised, as it is still not a bad price for a rotation player who contributes.

It’s also still possible that the Pistons could negotiate an extension at some point, but again, they would need to see more from Hayes before committing more years and money to this project.

We’ll know a lot more in October, which will be a huge month for Hayes and the Pistons, who will have to decide what to do with the polarizing guard.