Nigel Hayes-Davis facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids
Nigel Hayes-Davis
Phoenix Suns
Hayes-Davis with Fenerbahçe Beko in 2025
Power forward
Personal information
Born	(1994-12-16) December 16, 1994 (age 30) Westerville, Ohio, U.S.
High school	Whitmer (Toledo, Ohio)
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight	227 lb (103 kg)
Career information
College	Wisconsin (2013–2017)
NBA Draft	2017 / Undrafted
Pro career	2017–present
League	NBA
Career history
2017–2018	Westchester Knicks
2018	Los Angeles Lakers
2018	Toronto Raptors
2018	→Raptors 905
2018	Sacramento Kings
2018–2019	Galatasaray
2019–2021	Žalgiris Kaunas
2021–2022	FC Barcelona
2022–2025	Fenerbahçe
2025-present	Phoenix Suns

Career highlights and awards
EuroLeague champion (2025) EuroLeague Final Four MVP (2025) 2× All-EuroLeague First Team (2024, 2025) EuroLeague Finals Top Scorer (2025) 2x Turkish League champion (2024, 2025) Turkish League Finals MVP (2024) 2x Turkish Cup winner (2024, 2025) Turkish Cup Final MVP (2025) All-Turkish League Second Team (2023) Spanish Cup winner (2022) 2× Lithuanian League champion (2020, 2021) 2× Lithuanian Cup winner (2020, 2021) NBA G League All-Rookie Team (2018) First-team All-Big Ten (2016) 2× Third-team All-Big Ten (2015, 2017) Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year (2014) Big Ten All-Freshman team (2014)

Nigel Hayes-Davis (born December 16, 1994) is an American professional basketball player. He plays for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before joining the Suns, he played for Fenerbahçe in Turkey.

Hayes-Davis went to Whitmer High School in Toledo, Ohio. He played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers. He is known for being a two-time member of the All-EuroLeague First Team. He also holds the record for the most points scored in a EuroLeague game, with 50 points in a single game. In 2025, he won the EuroLeague championship with Fenerbahçe and was named the EuroLeague Final Four MVP.

High School Basketball

Nigel Hayes-Davis played high school basketball at Whitmer High School. He was a talented player who caught the attention of college scouts. He was considered a strong power forward.

College Basketball Career

Hayes-Davis played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers from 2013 to 2017.

Junior Year Success

In his third year, Hayes-Davis was named to the First Team All-Big Ten. This means he was one of the best players in his college conference. He led the Badgers in scoring, averaging 15.7 points per game. He also led the team in assists and was second in rebounds.

Hayes playing in 2017

Senior Year and Leadership

Before his final year, Hayes-Davis was named Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year. He continued to play well, averaging 14.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He graduated in May 2017 with a degree in business finance. Hayes-Davis was also known for speaking up on important topics like fairness in sports and racial justice.

Professional Basketball Journey

After college, Nigel Hayes-Davis began his professional basketball career.

Early NBA Teams

Hayes-Davis was not chosen in the 2017 NBA draft, but he joined the New York Knicks for the NBA Summer League. He later played for their G League team, the Westchester Knicks.

In 2018, he signed short contracts with a few NBA teams. He played briefly for the Los Angeles Lakers, making his NBA debut. He also played for the Toronto Raptors and their G League team, the Raptors 905. Later, he signed with the Sacramento Kings for the rest of the 2017–18 season.

Playing in Europe

After his time in the NBA, Hayes-Davis moved to Europe to continue his career.

Galatasaray (2018–2019)

In 2018, Hayes-Davis joined Galatasaray in Turkey. He played well, averaging 12.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in the Turkish League. He also played in the EuroCup, another European competition.

Žalgiris (2019–2021)

In 2019, Hayes-Davis signed with Žalgiris Kaunas in Lithuania. He played two seasons with the team. In his first EuroLeague season, he averaged 6.3 points. In his second season, his performance improved, averaging 9.5 points per game.

Hayes-Davis with FC Barcelona in 2022

Barcelona (2021–2022)

After his successful time in Lithuania, Hayes-Davis joined FC Barcelona in Spain in 2021. He reunited with his former coach, Šarūnas Jasikevičius. He helped the team reach the 2022 EuroLeague Final Four.

Fenerbahçe (2022–2025)

In 2022, Hayes-Davis signed with Fenerbahçe, a top team in Turkey. He extended his contract with them in 2023. His former coach, Šarūnas Jasikevičius, also joined Fenerbahçe in December 2023.

EuroLeague Record

On March 29, 2024, Hayes-Davis made history. He broke the Euroleague record for the most points scored by a single player in a game. He scored an amazing 50 points in a win against Alba Berlin. This broke the previous record of 49 points. He helped Fenerbahçe reach the 2024 EuroLeague Final Four.

EuroLeague Champion

In December 2024, he had another great game, scoring 33 points against Real Madrid. This earned him the MVP award for that round of the EuroLeague.

On May 25, 2025, Hayes-Davis led Fenerbahçe to win their second EuroLeague championship in Abu Dhabi. He was a key player in their wins against Panathinaikos in the semi-final and Monaco in the final. In the final game, he scored 23 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Because of his outstanding performance, he was named the EuroLeague Final Four MVP. He was the second Fenerbahçe player ever to win this award.

Phoenix Suns (2025–present)

After his successful time in Europe, Nigel Hayes-Davis joined the Phoenix Suns in the NBA in 2025.

International Basketball

Hayes-Davis has also been involved with the USA National Team. In 2024, he was part of the "Select Team" that helped the main Olympic squad prepare for the 2024 Summer Olympics. He trained with famous players like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry.

Personal Life

In 2021, Nigel changed his last name to Hayes-Davis to honor his stepfather. He also has a well-known cat named Sly, who he sees as his "grey shadow."

Career Statistics

NBA Regular Season

Year	Team	Games Played	Minutes Per Game	Field Goal %	3-Point %	Free Throw %	Rebounds Per Game	Assists Per Game	Steals Per Game	Blocks Per Game	Points Per Game
2017–18	L.A. Lakers	2	5.5	.333	.000	1.000	—	1.0	—	—	1.5
2017–18	Toronto	2	3.3	1.000	1.000	—	—	—	—	—	3.0
2017–18	Sacramento	5	21.0	.333	.167	.000	4.4	.8	.4	.6	3.6
Career		9	13.6	.333	.250	.333	2.4	.7	.2	.3	3.0

EuroLeague Statistics

*	Led the league
†	Won the league

Year	Team	Games Played	Games Started	Minutes Per Game	Field Goal %	3-Point %	Free Throw %	Rebounds Per Game	Assists Per Game	Steals Per Game	Blocks Per Game	Points Per Game	Performance Index Rating
2019–20	Žalgiris	28*	10	22.3	.404	.372	.758	3.5	1.0	.4	.2	6.3	6.6
2020–21	Žalgiris	33	30	26.7	.443	.443	.894	3.9	1.2	1.1	.2	9.5	9.8
2021–22	Barcelona	37	16	18.9	.367	.244	.800	2.1	.8	.5	.1	4.2	4.0
2022–23	Fenerbahçe	39	39	30.5	.568	.405	.750	4.4	1.5	1.2	.3	10.5	13.4
2023–24	Fenerbahçe	37	36	31.5	.562	.372	.832	4.6	1.7	1.0	.2	13.8	15.6
2024–25†	Fenerbahçe	39	39	31.2	.498	.410	.908	5.3	1.7	1.1	.4	16.7	18.3
Career		213	170	27.1	.504	.392	.836	4.0	1.3	.9	.3	10.4	11.6

EuroCup Statistics

Year	Team	Games Played	Games Started	Minutes Per Game	Field Goal %	3-Point %	Free Throw %	Rebounds Per Game	Assists Per Game	Steals Per Game	Blocks Per Game	Points Per Game	Performance Index Rating
2018–19	Galatasaray	10	8	29.2	.518	.432	.917	5.6	1.8	1.1	.1	15.7	17.8
Career		10	8	29.2	.518	.432	.917	5.6	1.8	1.1	.1	15.7	17.8

College Statistics

Year	Team	Games Played	Games Started	Minutes Per Game	Field Goal %	3-Point %	Free Throw %	Rebounds Per Game	Assists Per Game	Steals Per Game	Blocks Per Game	Points Per Game
2013–14	Wisconsin	38	0	17.4	.510	—	.585	2.8	.9	.8	.5	7.7
2014–15	Wisconsin	40	40	32.9	.497	.396	.744	6.2	2.0	.9	.4	12.4
2015–16	Wisconsin	35	35	36.2	.368	.293	.736	5.8	3.0	1.1	.4	15.7
2016–17	Wisconsin	37	37	32.4	.457	.314	.587	6.6	2.7	.8	.4	14.0
Career		150	112	29.6	.446	.332	.666	5.3	2.1	.9	.4	12.4