Killian Hayes has missed most of his rookie season with a hip injury, but the Pistons believe he’ll be able to return for Saturday’s game against the Knicks, tweets James Edwards III of The Athletic.
Hayes has been making significant progress with the injury lately, although most estimates were for him to return sometime next week. He was cleared for on-court basketball activities in mid-March.
The seventh pick in last year’s draft, Hayes won the starting point guard job in training camp. He played just seven games, averaging 4.6 points and 3.6 assists in 21.1 minutes per night, before suffering a right hip subluxation.
Aside from that early-season glimpse, the 19-year-old remains something of a mystery to most North American basketball fans. He grew up in France and played a season in Germany before being drafted. He will presumably be worked back into a starting role so the Pistons can see what he’s capable of before this year’s draft.