2. Charlotte Hornets at Atlanta Hawks January 6, 2021
Hayward’s career-high had come earlier that calendar year. In January of 2021, he hung 44 on the Atlanta Hawks in their home arena. Unlike in the game against the obviously tanking Spurs, the Hawks were a game opponent—one that would eventually make it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals later that season. And unlike the Spurs game, there would be no sitting out of the fourth quarter.
Hayward’s 14 points in the fourth quarter were 2/3 of the total points the Hornets scored in that final chapter. In fact, he scored in double digits in three of the four quarters of the contest. A 44-point outing is impressive, scoring 44 when your team has 102 in total, is even more so. Here are highlights of his stunning performance.