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SALT LAKE CITY — Gordon Hayward's taking the court by storm.
It's probably not the type of court you're thinking of for Hayward, though. This week, Hayward's been playing tennis, participating in the Of Love Tournament for the benefit of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
This isn't Hayward's first time on the tennis court. Hayward played tennis in high school extensively, well enough to be listed on national tennis recruiting websites. A growth spurt to Hayward's current height of 6'8'' made basketball a more natural fit, and that's obviously been a solid career choice.
But Hayward, who says he hasn't played tennis more than a couple of times since moving to Salt Lake City in 2010, still has real game. His serve is now his major weapon: being basketball-tall means that it comes from a high release point and bounces higher than players are used to, resulting in a weak return that Hayward puts away at the net.
Hayward's skills go beyond serve-and-volleying, though. For one, he possesses really solid touch: tough, low volleys aren't much of a problem for him to get down to and spin over the net. His forehand is very solid (in three matches, I've seen a single digit number of unforced errors from that wing), and, of course, the court coverage is superb. His backhand and return game is a little weaker, but for someone who hasn't played seriously since high school, the total package is really impressive.
Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised. After all, Hayward is a professional athlete, and has a set of skills that should allow him to pick up any sport really quickly. But tennis is a difficult game, and again, it's been nearly a decade since he really played it.
He entered into the Men's 4.5 division of the tournament (entry fee: $48), and now finds himself in the final, to be played Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. at the Eccles Tennis Center at the University of Utah. Entry is free to see Hayward play in the morning.
To get there, he's defeated fellow amateur entries Garin Hess (6-0, 6-1), Nathan Kasparian (4-6, 6-1, 6-0), and Tyler Holzer (6-4, 6-1), none of whom really bargained for playing a professional athlete in the tournament (though Kasparian is at least a big Jazz fan).
LIVE on #Periscope: Gordon Hayward tennis match round 2 https://t.co/UijnbJXZe1 — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) August 4, 2016
In case you're curious: yes, Hayward is still doing strenuous basketball workouts amidst all of this tennis playing. No, you can't blame missed shots next season on him playing in this tournament. His matches have all been watched by Jazz personnel, and they've approved him doing this for charity. He's also been supported by players Alec Burks and Dante Exum who have come to watch him play, as well as coaches Quin Snyder and Johnnie Bryant.
Hayward will also be participating in the tournament's exhibition matches Saturday night at 5 p.m., playing with and against tennis pros Ryan Harrison and Mark Philippoussis. Tickets to see the exhibition are $15 for adults, and are available at the Of Love Tournament's website.
