NBA Draft 2019: Best and worst fits for all potential lottery picks

6. Jaxson Hayes, 6-11 C, Texas

BEST: Atlanta Hawks

This past season, no team played at a faster pace than the “Baby” Hawks of Atlanta, with the 21-and-under cast of Trae Young, John Collins and Kevin Huerter flying around the court, hoisting up threes and attacking the basket early in the shot clock and in transition. Despite having talent in the backcourt and in both forward spots, Atlanta is missing a long-term option at center: Neither Mason Plumlee or Alex Len project to be anything more than limited stopgaps at the position, and Dewayne Dedmon (who was effective as a veteran presence on defense) could walk as a free agent.

Enter Jaxson Hayes, a prototypical athlete at his size with the rim-running and shot-blocking abilities of a modern-day center. Giving Young two 6-11 sky-walking lob threats and rim-runners would be ideal based on how the Young-Collins pairing meshed offensively this past season in the open court and pick-and-roll. Hayes would give the team another great at-rim finisher (86.7 FG% at the rim this past season, per hoop-math) and a potential short-roll playmaker: Although he wasn’t utilized as a passer that often, Hayes flashed glimpses of positive decision-making in that department, which could be unlocked in a free-flowing offense with multiple cutters and shooters. With potentially two picks in the top-10, Atlanta could have two shots at grabbing a legitimate NBA center — if he’s available, they shouldn’t hesitate for even a second.

WORST: Memphis Grizzlies

A frontcourt pairing of Jaren Jackson Jr. (6-11, 7-5 wingspan) and Jaxson Hayes (6-11) would be a force to be reckoned with defensively, with both bigs featuring advanced mobility, length, recognition, timing, and functionality at their size. Both are phenomenal shot blockers and rim deterrents and have the fluidity to step out on the perimeter to occasionally guard switches. This would undoubtedly be a fun pairing, and the offensive upside — Jackson can space the floor, and both bigs have hinted at upside as passers from the post and short-roll — wouldn’t be half-bad either.

Yet, the whole point of drafting Jackson as the franchise cornerstone is to unlock both your offense and defense because of his aforementioned strengths, so that the team could have a potential “unicorn” anchoring the defense and not possessing any glaring weaknesses that so many bigs have. Drafting Hayes in the top-half of the lottery would be a move that willingly negates the advantage of playing Jackson in the first place. Would this be a bad duo? No, not at all. But would pairing two players such as Jackson and Hayes limit the maximum upside that the franchise could reach from a team-building standpoint? Yes, yes it would.