NBA Comparison: Luke Jackson/Mike Dunleavy Jr.

Strengths: The 6-9 Sophomore forward is an outstanding shooter as evidenced by his 84% free throw percentage … He has a high, quick release on his jumper enabling him to get his shot off when he wants … His three-point accuracy has regressed from his freshman to sophomore campaign largely due to opponents contesting a higher percentage of his outside looks … There’s no doubt that he will be able to hit the outside jumper with great accuracy at the next level when getting open looks alongside another playmaker … At the college level he also does a very good job of getting to the free throw line via drives to the basket or by drawing contact from offensive putbacks, 30% of his points come from the charity stripe … Hayward is more than just a shooter as he’s also an excellent offensive rebounder from the SF/wing position, averaging 2.1 offensive boards per game at an 8.5% offensive rebounding percentage … He uses his good size and underrated athleticism to his advantage on the glass as he’s averaging 8.3 total rebounds per game … Gordon’s ball handling ability is also a bit underrated, while he won’t blow by anyone with his quickness, he is an effective ball handler and will initiate Butler’s offense from the point forward position at times … Hayward is also an effective passer with a high basketball IQ, he often defers to teammates and is willing to make the extra pass …

Weaknesses: The biggest knock on Hayward’s game is his lack of aggression … He shows it from time to time, but we would like to see him make a more concerted effort to dominate games when his team needs him … He’s a match up problem for many teams at the college level, but his lack of a post game has allowed opponents to guard him with smaller defenders … While we mentioned that he’s a respectable ball handler, he does not look to score very often off of the dribble … He gets to the rim at times in college, but that is not likely to translate to the NBA … Hayward is a decent defender using his size and athleticism to his advantage at the college level … However, his lack of elite lateral footspeed and strength will make it difficult to match up with small forwards in the NBA … Several scouts and knowledgable observers have mentioned that Gordon is "too nice" which points to our comment about his lack of aggression … Other questions exist about his commitment to being a great basketball player … He is a very smart kid, majoring in engineering … To his credit he has other interests and will have other options outside of basketball, but he must commit himself if he wants to be an effective player at the next level …

Josh Cochran 2/15/10