The numbers don’t lie. It’s time to move on from Cam Hayes as NC State’s PG.

Cam Hayes is talented and NC State needs him.

There is no doubt about that. The kid is 6’4, handles the ball decently, plays extremely hard, and was a pretty good shooter until this season. One thing he is not, however, is a PG.

NC State has a lot of problems this season, but the most glaring to us is Keatts insistence that Hayes be the primary ball-handler when he’s in the game. Hayes doesn’t pass the eye test at the point. He keeps his dribble high. He doesn’t have a low center of gravity, limiting his ability to absorb contact on drives and limiting his shiftiness and ability to change direction on a dime. He isn’t a natural-born leader. And that’s not a knock on the kid, it’s just the facts. He has the chance to be a real factor for this team, but he’s being hampered by being forced into a position he isn’t built for.

About ten years ago, there seemed to be a theory shift. The theory was that maybe we were viewing the PG position wrong the whole time. Why not replace PGs with bigger, stronger, shooting guards who had decent handles and would look to shoot first. This way you’d have more scorers and more size on the court.

It was a nice theory…in theory.

In the end, it never really worked out. While a few shoot-first PGs ended up becoming stars, most didn’t. It ends up that having the ball dominated by a guy who doesn’t command leadership on the floor, someone who doesn’t have great vision or doesn’t look to create for his teammates, doesn’t lead to many victories. In fact, it leads to stagnant offenses, guys standing around, and poor team chemistry.

NC State’s problem is that they didn’t seem to get the memo. Maybe it’s not by design. Maybe Keatts thought he could turn Hayes into Markell Johnson 2.0 and it just hasn’t worked out. But at this point, if they want to have a chance this year, and even into next year, they need to re-evaluate how they use Cam Hayes.

Now, doing this is going to hurt Cam’s feelings. It’s going to make him angry. He’s been a PG throughout his entire prep career and he’s been successful. But this isn’t prep basketball, this is the ACC, and it was noticeable last year, and glaring this year. He doesn’t have the tools to do it at this level. It’s time to move him off the ball, for the sake of his future and for the sake of NC State’s present.

Keatts needs to commit to Dereon Seabron at the point.

Seabron is getting lost as a swing forward in ACC play. He is by far the most talented guy on the floor, he plays through contact, he finishes at the rim, and because of that, he draws defenders. He’s not a great passer, but that is a skill he can improve. He does have good vision and has shown a willingness to find open guys when the defense draws down. In fact, Seabron is leading NC State in assists with 3.1 per game.

Moving Seabron to the point also does the kid a service for his future. There is no way he’s going to play the 3 or 4 in the pros. There is no way he’s even going to be drafted as a shooting guard, as he really doesn’t have a consistent jumper. If he’s going to make it at the next level, it’s going to be as a point guard.

So now is the time to make the move. It’s not going to be a quick fix. Seabron isn’t going to come in and suddenly become an elite floor leader, but you have to let him work it out there. Get used to being the primary ball handler. Be used to getting others involved if the defense collapses on the drive. And you back him up with Breon Pass, who slowly is getting acclimated to the college game.

This isn’t just some random opinion. It’s backed by the numbers. Cam Hayes simply isn’t getting it done at point. Last night was just another example. He finished the game playing 25 minutes, 4 assists, 1 turnover, 3 rebounds and zero points on 0-6 shooting. He had a couple of costly misses and a big turnover down the stretch. But it’s not just this one game it’s been a trend. Look…

• Cam Hayes is tied for 10th of the 15 ACC point guards in scoring (10.5 ppg).
  
• Cam Hayes is LAST of the 15 ACC point guards in assists (2.6 assists per game).
• Cam Hayes is 14th of the 15 ACC point guards in FG% (35.1%).
• Cam Hayes is LAST of the 15 ACC point guards in 3 pt % (24.6%).
• The lone bright spot for Hayes is the fact that he’s 1st of the 15 ACC point guards in limiting turnovers (.8 TOs per game).

But Hayes isn’t turning the ball over because he’s not taking necessary risks. He’s not driving and dishing, he’s not trying to put guys in a better position by drawing defenders. Almost every time he makes his drive, he shoots. And he’s not hitting. Cam Hayes is a shooting guard at the ACC level, and it’s time to admit it. The ball security simply isn’t valuable enough to make up for the other statistics.

It’s time to have him compete for minutes with Terquavion Smith, Casey Morsell and Thomas Allen.

It’s time to move Seabron to the point, increase his touches, let him learn the position and grow into a team leader and floor general. Keep Terquavion Smith at the 2. Play Morsell at the 3, Hellems at the 4 and Dowuona at the 5.

Hayes can split minutes between the 2 and the 3 in Keatts offense, but allowing Seabron to maximize his touches, learn the position and become your true PG will pay dividends not just this year, but into next year before he leaves. It’s then that you pass the torch to the 5-star freshman Dillingham or the then veteran Breon Pass.

In a perfect world, Seabron probably wouldn’t be your first choice to play point. He doesn’t have a ton of experience there and he’s not a great passer. But with this roster, at this time, he’s the best option.

This may seem like a drastic move. It may seem like you are making a full 180 mid-season, but this is something you should have seen in the preseason, or at least a few games into the season. At this point, it is a big change, but it’s necessary if NC State wants to maximize their talent and make something of this season.