NC State Basketball
Wolferetti: A closer look at Cam Hayes struggles, and why I think a late season breakout is possible.
Cam Hayes was supposed to be one of Kevin Keatts’ main pieces coming into his sophomore season. He was expected to improve on his freshman season which saw him post 7.8 ppg, 3.1 assists, 2.4 rebounds, and 38.6% from the field (36.4% from 3).
Instead, Hayes has struggled badly, posting 7.4ppg, 2.4 assists, 2.3 rebounds, and 32.2% from the field (20.5% from 3).
Hayes added some muscle in the offseason, but it seems as if he hadn’t quite learned how to use it yet. He was still shying away from contact, still pulling up for contested jumpers in the lane, and still being forced outside the lane on drives and settling for pseudo-floaters from the block.
Hayes seemingly hit rock bottom in the scoring department during the stretch of games between 1/19 and 2/2. He was held scoreless in 4 of those 5 games, shooting just 5-23 from the field (21.7%) and 0-8 from 3 point range. In fact, since 12-29 (when full-time ACC play started) Hayes has not hit a single 3 in the rhythm of the game.
His 3 vs. Notre Dame this past weekend was forced with the shot clock down to 4. His 3 vs. Louisville was an off-balance 3 with hands in his face as the shot clock expired. And his 3 against Clemson was another off-balance 3 with hands in his face as the clock expired on the first half. That’s it. That’s all of the 3s he’s made since late December.
However, there have been some signs of improvement overall. During that span he started to show a willingness to attack the basket with a little more physicality. He was coming off the ball screens harder and forcing his way into the lane. While he still forced a few bad shots, he was also starting to find his teammates as the defense reacted to his drives.
Hayes had 12 assists and 6 turnovers (4 of which came in the first game vs. Notre Dame). That 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio isn’t bad and is something Keatts can live with from his young guard. In fact, during that span, it was the best ratio on the team.
Now, if only Hayes could start hitting a few shots, he might be able to start chipping away at reclaiming his starting PG role, a role that Keatts was forced to give to Dereon Seabron due to Hayes’ struggles.
Against Notre Dame this past weekend, Hayes showed a few glimpses of his offense coming back online. He started slow but eventually got things going. He finished with 11 points on 5-13 shooting. He also hit his first 3 since January 12th (although he was only 1-5 from 3 pt range.)
Hayes went on a little run between the 16 minutes mark of the second half until the 11:54 mark, where he hit his 3, corralled a defensive rebound, got to the lane for a layup, missed a 3, missed a jumper, got an offensive rebound and hit another jumper. During that approximately 4 minute span, Hayes scored 7 points on 3-5 shooting and brought in 2 rebounds. And while that’s really not especially crazy, it was a nice sign for a kid who had been struggling so badly in so many aspects of the game.
It’s obvious that Hayes is having confidence problems, but they didn’t just arise out of nowhere. He’s been struggling with his shot all season and those struggles have been bleeding into other parts of his game. It’s not like he’s been way off, either. He’s had a number of shots go in and out, mostly 3s. This tells you that something is just slightly off with his shot.
Usually, when a shooter is just slightly off like this, it’s an issue with the arms. Shooters will sometimes guide the ball too much, throwing their release off just a tad. So what is causing him to get arm-y with his shot? Usually, for shooters, this is a product of not having enough legs in your shot, forcing your arms to get more involved.
I went back to take a look to see what I’d find.
What I saw was interesting. Last season Hayes would always catch the ball in a deeper crouch, almost as if he was seated. His butt and legs made an acute angle. (For all you 8th-grade math wizards out there, that’s less than 90 degrees). He’d be in that crouch as he brought the ball up to near his face. However, on most of his 3s this season, you can see that he’s not very deep in his crouch when he’s initiating his shot. His butt and legs are making an obtuse angle (greater than 90 degrees.)
If you aren’t a shooter, then this probably doesn’t seem like it makes a big difference. However, any small alteration to a shooter’s stance matters in a big way. Hayes is getting less lift from his glutes, quads and hamstrings (big muscles), and forcing his calves and arms to take on the load.
Now, if you go back this season, you can also see times when Hayes will cock the ball back early (it looks like a small hitch in his shot). It’s noticeable and it’s been a miss every time he’s done it. Because of that, YouTube doesn’t have any video to examine (ACC Network only shows made shots on their highlights). However, most of the time when a shooter does that, it’s to get a little extra effort onto his shot (using his arms, and compensating for lack of legs).
All of the shots I’m showing are makes. Which shows you that even when Hayes is making shots this season, he’s not getting into the position he got in last season. Could that explain the 20% shooting from beyond the arc? Absolutely.
I’m sure this is something he’s working on, but if Hayes can start scoring, he’ll certainly raise his confidence. And if he raises his confidence, I think we start seeing the player we were hoping to see.
The past few games have shown that he’s learning to attack with more strength and looking to find the open man. If he becomes the shooter he was last season, NC State immediately adds an impact player that they’ve been missing all season long.
Now, fixing your shot doesn’t just happen in a single gym session. You might fix it, come back the next day, and muscle memory takes you back to creating the same flaws you’ve had all season. But constant gym work over the course of a week can get you there. Hayes surely has been in the gym working on his shot all season long, and the elevation and release are fine, so maybe it’s the legs. Maybe it’s that he just needs to see the ball go in the hoop a few more times.
Whatever it is, there have been more and more glimpses of Hayes starting to turn the corner, and while he hasn’t quite put it all together yet, I’m going to bet that sometime soon we see the breakout game we, and he, has been waiting for.
NC State Women’s Basketball team released their 2024-25 Non-Conference Schedule yesterday.
RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State women’s basketball program has announced its non-conference slate for the 2024-25 season, as revealed on Thursday.
The Pack will play eight of its 11 games, in addition to a preseason exhibition, at Reynolds Coliseum. Coming off a historical 2023-24 season that was highlighted by the program’s first Final Four since 1998, second in program history, head coach Wes Moore is entering his 12th season at the helm. With a strong home court advantage, the Pack has accumulated a 117-15 (.886) record at home since the renovation of Reynolds Coliseum was completed in August 2016.
NC State will participate in the Pink Flamingo Championship at Baha Mar in Nassau, Bahamas on Monday, Nov. 25 and Wednesday, Nov. 27 against opponents that will be announced at a later date. As previously announced, NC State will play the defending NCAA Champion South Carolina at the Ally Tipoff at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte on Sunday, Nov. 10, as well as host Ole Miss for the SEC/ACC Challenge on Thursday, Dec. 5.
The Wolfpack will host Anderson (S.C.) for an exhibition on Tuesday, Oct. 29 before officially starting the season at home vs. ETSU on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Following the Ally Tipoff, NC State will return home to host Kent State on Thursday, Nov. 14.
NC State’s first true road game of the season is at TCU on Sunday, Nov. 17. The Pack will then play Coastal Carolina at home on Thursday, Nov. 21 before its trip to the Bahamas for two games (Nov. 25-27).
The Pack will close out the non-conference slate with four straight games at Reynolds Coliseum, starting with the SEC/ACC Challenge game vs. Ole Miss (Thursday, Dec. 5). NC State will then host Old Dominion (Sunday, Dec. 8), Davidson (Wednesday, Dec. 11) and James Madison (Thursday, Dec. 19) to wrap up non-conference play.
With NC State’s known non-conference opponents, six are coming off postseason tournament appearances. Three received NCAA Tournament bids (Kent State, Ole Miss and NCAA Champion South Carolina), two were invited to play in the WBIT (TCU and James Madison) and one played in the WNIT (Old Dominion).
NC State’s Atlantic Coast Conference schedule will be announced by the league office at a later date. NC State will play Wake Forest, Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Miami, Notre Dame, Pitt, Virginia and Virginia Tech at home. The Pack will take on Wake Forest, Cal, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina, SMU, Stanford and Syracuse on the road.
Season tickets are sold out for the 2024-25 season. Tip-off times and television designations will also be released at a later date.
2024-25 Non-Conference Schedule
Tuesday, Oct. 29 – Anderson (Exh.)
Tuesday, Nov. 5 – ETSU
Sunday, Nov. 10 – South Carolina $
Thursday, Nov. 14 – Kent State
Sunday, Nov. 17 – at TCU
Thursday, Nov. 21 – Coastal Carolina
Monday, Nov. 25 – Opponent TBD &
Wednesday, Nov. 27 – Opponent TBD &
Thursday, Dec. 5 – Ole Miss +
Sunday, Dec. 8 – Old Dominion
Wednesday, Dec. 11 – Davidson
Thursday, Dec. 19 – James Madison
$ – Ally Tipoff (Spectrum Center, Charlotte, N.C.)
& – Pink Flamingo Championship (Baha Mar, Nassau, Bahamas)
+ – SEC/ACC Challenge (Raleigh, N.C.)
The NC State Men’s Basketball team revealed the Jersey Numbers for their 2024-25 team yesterday.
Numbers that are Staying the Same
Michael O’Connell – #12
Ben Middlebrooks – #34
Dennis Parker Jr. – #11
KJ Keatts – #13
Jordan Snell – #22
Numbers that have Changed
Jayden Taylor – #1 –> #8
Breon Pass – #10 –> #4
Numbers of New Players
Mike James – #0 (He wore #0 at Louisville last year)
Brandon Huntley-Hatfield – #1 (He wore #5 at Louisville last year)
Paul McNeil – #2 (He wore #2 in High School last year)
Dontrez Styles – #3 (He wore #0 at Georgetown last year)
Trey Parker – #5 (He wore #5 in High School last year)
Marcus Hill – #10 (He wore #0 at Bowling Green last year)
We don’t know what number Ismael Diouf will be wearing at NC State next year yet.
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I just dont see improvement. sorry
Cam’s ‘disappearance’ is just another component of this season’s disaster.
Had he improved as expected, coupled with a healthy team, the results might have been extraordinary.