11 Years and Many Feats Later, Tiffany Hayes Hangs Up Her WNBA Boots

The two-time UConn national champion and 2017 WNBA All-Star Tiffany Hayes has announced her retirement from the league. The summer season she spent with the Connecticut Sun was her last outing. After winning back-to-back national titles at UConn in 2009 and 2010, Hayes was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the 14th overall pick in the 2012 WNBA Draft. Before being moved to the Sun prior to the previous season, she was with the Dream for ten years.

Hayes averaged 13.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game during her time in the WNBA. Six times, the most recent with the Sun last season, she qualified for the playoffs. The 5-foot-10 Hayes has a lengthy playing career abroad, including time in China, Turkey, and Spain. In 2018, she was selected for the WNBA’s first team and the all-defensive second team.

Hayes’ NCAA tale

Hayes played for the University of Connecticut Huskies. She caught the attention of UConn assistant coach Tonya Cardoza in 2006 while playing AAU basketball. Hayes requested to wear the number three, which was previously worn by UConn star Diana Taurasi. She did not begin the season, but she was inserted into the starting lineup after teammate Caroline Doty was injured.

She scored the most points of her career in the NCAA Championship regional semifinal contest against California. Despite winning every game by double digits this season, Connecticut found itself eight points down in the California game. Hayes’ 28 points contributed to the team’s victory.

Hayes was invited to try out for the USA Women’s World University Games Team. When she was called up, she was the team’s only freshman and its youngest player. She contributed to the team’s 7-0 record and gold medal triumph in Belgrade, Serbia.

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On February 5, 2011, the Connecticut Huskies defeated DePaul 89-66. Hayes became the NCAA’s quickest player to 100 victories in this game, which also happened to be the 100th victory of her collegiate career.

Retirement after 11 incredible seasons

Tiffany Hayes played her first ten seasons with the Atlanta Dream after being selected as the 14th overall choice in the 2012 WNBA Draft. She was selected for the 2017 All-Star Game and the 2018 All-WNBA First Team during that period. With Atlanta, she scored over 14 points per game on 42.9 percent shooting from the floor.

Hayes was dealt from the Dream to the Sun during the previous offseason. She participated in all 40 games last year, averaging 12.1 points and three rebounds per game, after playing just 32 games in total in 2021 and 2022. She also participated in the 2018 exhibition match triumph against China.

Hayes obtained her citizenship in Azerbaijan in 2015 and participated in the country’s women’s national basketball team at the June 2015 European Games, which were hosted in Baku, Azerbaijan. She participated in the 3×3 basketball competition, and her team made it all the way to the quarterfinals.

Hayes acknowledged during her podcast interview that she was a little anxious about not performing in the summer of 2019. She made it clear, though, that she wasn’t giving up on basketball completely simply because she was leaving the WNBA. “You could still catch me overseas; I just figured I’d focus on one thing, and then summer time I could turn up my business. I could turn up life with my family and just live life like that,” says Tiffany Hayes.

During the 2012-13 offseason, Hayes played with Hapoel Rishon LeZion in Israel. Hayes spent the first half of the 2013-14 offseason with Beşiktaş JK in Turkey and the second half with America de Recife in Brazil. Hayes returned to the Turkish offseason with Yakin Dogu in 2015-16.

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In August 2016, Hayes joined Mersin BSB S.K. in preparation for the 2016-17 off-season. She signed a contract with Maccabi Ashdod for the 2017-18 summer. Hayes signed with Perfumeras Avenida of the Spanish League for the 2019-20 offseason in 2019, and later extended her deal for 2020-2021.