Know-A-Net: Jarvis Hayes
October 6, 2008
by Ben Couch -- NJNETS.COM |
East Rutherford, NJ — Jarvis Hayes can shoot. This we know. Despite never playing more than 29 minutes per game, the 6-7 forward has averaged 8.3 points during his five-year career, shooting .351 from deep.
Joining the New Jersey Nets as a free agent after four seasons in Washington and one in Detroit, Hayes now finds himself a veteran on a youthful squad, similar to the Wizards teams he came up on. The video-game fan and budding foodie can lecture his younger teammates on many a topic.
We recently spoke with Hayes, who sounds an awful lot like Laurence Fishburne. It’s time to Know a Net!
NJNets.com: What’s your first basketball memory?
Jarvis Hayes: My first basketball memory, it goes back a long time. I think I was 5 or 6 years old, and I begged my mother to take me to my first game; it was rec ball. And when I finally got out there, and I missed my first 10 shots. But from an early age, I was never shy about shooting the ball. That was probably one of my earliest, earliest memories, and I think it was my first year playing basketball, being so anxious to go play and having a god-awful game.
NJNets.com: When did you begin to envision basketball as a possible career?
Hayes: I started to think about doing it for a career when I got to Georgia. I always knew I was good, but I never kept a bloated impression of myself. I never wanted to think about myself as an NBA player earlier than I needed to. It kept me humble, it kept me hungry. It didn’t happen until my last couple of years in college that I really started to hone in on it.
NJNets.com: Who most encouraged you as a basketball player?
Hayes: My family. My family’s always been a source of strength for me. They kept me grounded when I needed to be grounded; they kept me up when times were down. So my family, then my high school coach, Jesse Bonner, and my college coach, Jim Harrick.
NJNets.com: How much did competing with your twin brother Jonas boost your development?
Hayes: Oh, it helped immensely. You’ve got another 6-6, 6-7, 6-8 guy pounding you and pounding you every day, even in practice and even in the playgrounds. It was always a good competition. So I think he helped prepare me for this level also.
NJNets.com: So seven-game series -- who wins?
Hayes: Hey – we never got through Game 7. We always got to pushing words in Game 7, so we’d end up at 3-3.
NJNets.com: Who has been your toughest matchup in the NBA?
Hayes: Kobe and LeBron. Kobe, because he’s immensely skilled and he’s a tough, tough matchup for anyone. And LeBron, because of his sheer strength, though he’s terribly skilled also. Those two guys are a loooad.
NJNets.com: There any tricks to stopping them?
Hayes: Tricks? Grab ’em as much as you can. [Laughs]
NJNets.com: What’s your gameday routine?
Hayes: Typically, I get up, eat a small breakfast before shootaround, then go back. I normally don’t sleep after shootaround, before games; I probably play my video games for a couple of hours, then lay down and watch TV for a little bit. Then get up and don’t listen to any radio going over to the arena, just pure quiet. When I get to the arena, put on some music and just relax, get my shots up, and get mentally in the zone.
NJNets.com: What’s the best way to relax afterwards?
Hayes: Best way to relax afterwards? Have a nice dinner, a nice glass of wine. Then rest, ice, soak. Recover.
NJNets.com: You mentioned playing video games – which do you play?
Hayes: I’m a big football buff, so I play a lot of Madden and a lot of College ’09.
NJNets.com: What team do you use in Madden?
Hayes: I normally build my own team, but if I build a team that’s already on there, it’s probably the (Atlanta) Falcons. And (quarterback) Matt Ryan does develop pretty nicely in the dynasty, I might add.
NJNets.com: Is there anyone on the team who can give you a run?
Hayes: I don’t know. I haven’t figured out if any of the guys can play, but I’m pretty sure they can. I’m pretty sure we’ll have tournaments during the season.
NJNets.com: Have you played as yourself in the NBA games?
Hayes: Yeah, of course. Come on now. You’ve got to play as yourself. When I was in Washington, and Detroit last year, I had a couple of dynasties and did pretty well for myself.
NJNets.com: How does virtual Jarvis Hayes stack up with the real deal?
Hayes: My three-point shooting needs to be up a little bit. But other than that, it’s pretty close. Pretty close.
NJNets.com: While in Washington, you reviewed restaurants for a weekly segment on radio. How’d you get involved with that?
Hayes: It started out when they wanted to know more about me, and they asked what type of foods do I eat. I said, ‘I’ll eat anything. There’s not too many things I at least won’t try.’ So that statement snowballed into a weekly review show. I would love to do it again, especially being here in New York. There’s a lot of things you can at least try and then talk about on the air.
NJNets.com: What foods are you angling to try around here?
Hayes: Anything. I don’t even know where to begin. There’s so much stuff that’s out here to at least try. I would love to do another weekly radio review.
NJNets.com: Did any place in D.C. stand out?
Hayes: [Nearly cuts me off] District ChopHouse. District. ChopHouse. It’s probably one of the best spots to get a good steak. [Directly to recorder, blatantly advertising] If you’re ever in D.C., check out District ChopHouse. It’s on 7th Street, by the Verizon Center. Check that out if you’re ever in D.C.
NJNets.com: Ha. Will do. Thanks, man.
Hayes: Sure thing.
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