Jaylen Hands facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Jaylen Hands

Hands at the 2017 McDonald's All-American Game
No. 40 – Panionios
Shooting guard / point guard
Personal information
Born	(1999-02-12) February 12, 1999 (age 26) San Diego, California, U.S.
High school	Mater Dei Catholic (Chula Vista, California) Balboa City School (San Diego, California) Foothills Christian (El Cajon, California)
Listed height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
College	UCLA (2017–2019)
NBA Draft	2019 / Round: 2 / Pick: 56th overall
Selected by the Los Angeles Clippers
Pro career	2019–present
League	Greek Basketball League EuroCup
Career history
2019–2020	Long Island Nets
2021	FMP
2021	MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg
2021–2022	Telenet Giants Antwerp
2022–2023	PAOK Thessaloniki
2023–2024	Peristeri
2024	Palencia
2024–2025	Pallacanestro Varese
2025-present	Panionios
Career highlights and awards
Second-team All-Pac-12 (2019) McDonald's All-American (2017)

Jaylen Joseph Hands, born on February 12, 1999, is an American professional basketball player. He currently plays for Panionios in Greece. Jaylen is known for playing as a shooting guard or point guard.

Before becoming a pro, he played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. In 2017, during his senior year of high school, he was chosen for the famous McDonald's All-American Game. Experts like ESPN and 247Sports rated him as a top player. He was considered the third-best point guard in his class. In 2019, during his second year at UCLA, he earned a spot on the second-team All-Pac-12.

Jaylen was picked by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2019 NBA draft. He was the 56th player chosen overall. Later, he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. He played one season in the NBA G League with the Long Island Nets, which is Brooklyn's team. After that, he started his basketball career in Europe in 2021.

High School Basketball Journey

Jaylen Hands started his high school basketball career at Mater Dei Catholic High School in Chula Vista, California. There, he was named an All-County player. He also won the San Diego Metro League Player of the Year award. In 2014, his team won the CIF championship.

After his second year, he tried to move to Foothills Christian High School in El Cajon. However, this move was not allowed by the local sports section. Instead, Jaylen went to Balboa City, a special prep school. This school was outside the usual rules. At Balboa City, he played with Deandre Ayton, who also became a top player.

For his final year of high school, Jaylen successfully transferred to Foothills Christian. He played for coach Brad Leaf, whose son, T. J. Leaf, also played for UCLA. In that year, Jaylen was amazing. He scored about 29 points, grabbed 6.7 rebounds, and made 6.5 assists per game. He also won the slam dunk contest at the Ballislife All-American Game.

Many top college teams wanted Jaylen to play for them. Teams like Arizona, Louisville, and San Diego State offered him scholarships. But on September 16, 2015, Jaylen decided to commit to UCLA.

College Basketball Career

Freshman Year at UCLA (2017–2018)

As a freshman in the 2017–18 season, Jaylen Hands joined junior Aaron Holiday. Both were fast guards who could handle the ball. They were expected to play together and share the point guard role. However, Jaylen's play was sometimes inconsistent. He often came off the bench for most of the season.

He started the first five games. But he missed one game after hurting his left foot against Wisconsin. When he returned, he became the team's sixth man, meaning he was the first player to come off the bench. On December 3, 2017, Jaylen had his best game yet. He scored 23 points and added nine rebounds, four assists, and two steals. This was in a big 106–73 win against Detroit Mercy.

After playing 14 games as a reserve, Jaylen returned to the starting lineup on January 25, 2018. This was for a game against California. He scored 14 points and had six rebounds in a 70–57 win. In the next game, he scored nine points and made a season-high 10 assists. This was in an 89–73 victory over Stanford.

Jaylen missed the last regular season game because he sprained his right ankle. He came back for UCLA's first game in the Pac-12 tournament. But he only played 10 minutes and did not start. He finished the season averaging 9.9 points per game. After the season, Jaylen thought about entering the 2018 NBA draft. He even went to the NBA Draft Combine. But he decided to stay at UCLA for another year.

Sophomore Year at UCLA (2018–2019)

In the 2018–19 season, Jaylen Hands became the main point guard. This was because Aaron Holiday had left for the NBA. Jaylen wanted to be a better leader and improve his assists compared to his turnovers. He and fellow sophomore Kris Wilkes were the team's top returning scorers.

On November 28, 2019, Jaylen made a career-high 11 assists. This was in an 80–61 win against Hawaii. In the next game, he achieved his first career double-double. He scored 17 points and had 10 assists in an 82–58 win over Loyola Marymount. He then had another double-double with 12 points and 11 assists against Notre Dame. He was the first UCLA player to have 10 or more assists in three games in a row.

On February 9, 2019, Jaylen scored a career-high 27 points against Utah. However, UCLA lost the game 93–92. On February 23, he scored all of his 27 points in the second half. He made 7 of 8 three-pointers. This helped UCLA come back from a 19-point deficit to win 90–83 against Oregon.

In the next game against USC, he had 21 points and 10 assists with no turnovers. This was in a 93–88 overtime win against their rivals. His great play against the Trojans earned him his first Pac-12 Player of the Week award. In UCLA's first game of the Pac-12 tournament, Jaylen had 22 points and a career-high 11 rebounds. This helped them win 79–72 against Stanford.

He finished the year as the top player in the Pac-12 for assists, averaging 6.1 per game. He was also named to the second-team All-Pac-12. After the season, he decided to enter the NBA draft and hired an agent.

Professional Basketball Career

Long Island Nets (2019–2020)

The Los Angeles Clippers picked Jaylen Hands in the second round of the 2019 NBA draft. He was the 56th player chosen overall. The Brooklyn Nets then traded for him. They sent another player and a future draft pick to the Clippers. Brooklyn used a special rule to have Jaylen sign with their G League team, the Long Island Nets.

On December 11, 2019, Jaylen had a great game for the Long Island Nets. He scored 28 points, grabbed six rebounds, made five assists, and had three steals. This was in a win against the Westchester Knicks. In his first professional season, Jaylen averaged 11.3 points, 3.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game. On November 19, 2020, his draft rights were traded to the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons later gave up his rights in July 2021.

Playing in Europe (2021–Present)

On January 1, 2021, Jaylen signed a two-year contract with a Serbian team called FMP. This team plays in the ABA League. In August 2021, Jaylen also played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2021 NBA Summer League. In September, his G League rights were traded to the Westchester Knicks. On September 22, Jaylen signed with MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in Germany.

On October 11, 2021, Jaylen joined Telenet Giants Antwerp in Belgium. Then, on July 4, 2022, he signed with PAOK Thessaloniki in Greece. In 31 games there, he averaged 13.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists.

On June 24, 2023, Jaylen signed with Peristeri Athens, another Greek team. He also played in the FIBA Champions League with them. He left the club on February 14, 2024. He was averaging 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists, but he missed some games due to injuries.

On July 9, 2024, Jaylen signed with Pallacanestro Varese in Italy. As of 2025, he plays for Panionios in Greece.

Career Statistics

College Stats

See also

In Spanish: Jaylen Hands para niños