Cam Hayes Transferring to LSU

Slowly but surely Matt McMahon is rebuilding the LSU men’s basketball roster.

The latest addition to the 2022-2023 team comes in the form of rising junior Cam Hayes, formerly of NC State. Hayes played in all 32 games this past season and started 13 for the Wolfpack; he had a better freshman season than sophomore, and saw his three point shooting drop from 36 percent in 2020-21, to 25 percent.

But there’s no denying Hayes is talented. He was the No. 68 player coming out of high school and the No. 2 prospect in the state of North Carolina. He also, crucially, has two seasons playing against Power 5 competition, something that LSU’s other three transfers (Juice Hill, Trae Hannibal, and Kendal Coleman) don’t.

Here’s what our sister site, Backing the Pack, had to say about Hayes.

Hayes went through a major sophomore slump that eventually cost him all of his confidence. (And playing time could have become more of a problem for him as well.)

It was a disappointing year after the promise that he showed as a freshman, and he’s definitely a better player than he showed in 2022, but at some point, it becomes difficult for anybody to turn around a rough season.

I suspect that Cam will benefit from a change of scenery that will help him wipe the slate clean. He definitely can be a solid player on a good power-conference team, but it could be that was never going to be the case in Raleigh. All the best to him.

With the addition of Hayes LSU can now field a whole dang starting five come November. Matt McMahon and staff just need to add a bench player or two and he’ll have the Tigers back in the NCAA Tournament in no time.

sighs