Hayden makes it back-to-back elite Charleston sophomore shooters in the Film Room. He creates a lot of space for the offensive environments that he plays in because of his prowess as a corner deadeye and desire to fill good lanes in transition to the wings. However, he is steadily improving his game to become more than just a spot-up threat. Thorn showed some of that in his highlights, particularly in the late summer with 843 Tough . He can finish through and around contact at the rim well, so I would like to see him improve his off-the-dribble scoring to make him even more of a tough two-guard to contain.

Another shooter from Team 9 who had a good day in Rock Hill was Thorn. Hayden is one of the better Shooting Guards in his class, so his strong performance was no surprise. He provided some important spacing to this offense and was an effective defender when engaged. As he continues to refine and polish his offensive skill set, Thorn will be a very good player for Oceanside Collegiate Academy.

This Oceanside Collegiate and 843 Tough Shooting Guard checks in at #58 for his debut in the Prep Hoops South Carolina Class of 2029 Rankings. I’ve been impressed with Hayden’s perimeter shooting on multiple occasions, including the first time I saw him this year in Columbia. He can be efficient with low or high volume, and will be used on designed sets to get good looks from behind the arc.

Saturday’s second 843 Tough standout, Hayden, was one of the best 2029 shooters in the gym. Thorn hit two threes in their first matchup with SC Premier, then followed it up with five threes in an overtime win over the Blue Jays. He was the primary target on many BLOB sets, and a couple of them were successful in getting Thorn an open look. Hayden was also effective at hitting outside shots straight off the catch or off one to two dribbles, plus he showed some other sides of his game with some intelligent cutting and a solid handle to attack a closeout.