Former Badger Nigel Hayes-Davis has just finished winning a championship with Fenerbahce Beko of the EuroLeague, winning the Final Four MVP award, and he was set to make millions in a contract extension. Then the NBA called, and all of those plans changed. His ability to chase his NBA dream and allow his mom to attend his games in person led him to turn down millions of dollars and a guaranteed contract in the EuroLeague.
Hayes-Davis would have become one of the highest-paid players in the EuroLeague if he signed his new deal with Fenerbahce. According to BasketNews, "Fenerbahce had a deal on the table worth up to $9 million NET over three seasons, with the first two years guaranteed. This offer would have ranked him among the highest-paid players in the EuroLeague."
His reported deal with the Suns is a one-year NBA league minimum contract of $2 million. So, while the difference is about a million dollars, the guarantee vs. the non-guarantee makes it so Hayes-Davis turned down a lot more.
The former Badger sacrificed guaranteed money so his mom could watch him play in the NBA
However, he decided to bet on himself and chase down a dream he says he has had since he was a child. In an interview with ABC 27 out of Wisconsin, Hayes-Davis said, "We only have one life, and my career in basketball is extremely finite, extremely temporary. And if I have the opportunity to chase that dream, then you know, I'm going to do that. I am going to bet on myself."
He also said that another motivation for him was that he gets to play live in front of his mom instead of her watching on television thousand of miles away, "Especially with my mother being able to have the opportunity to watch me in person...as loud as she supports, I'll probably hear her during some of these NBA games. It's a huge blessing."
Hayes-Davis is not listed on the Phoenix Suns summer league roster, as the deal still needs a couple more hoops before it's finalized. The first was making sure he could get out of his deal with Fenerbahce. That was announced today on social media, so he can now actually sign his deal with the Suns. However, he may still not be on the summer roster, as the turnaround would be impressively quick.