Marques Hayden Leaning To School

Marques Hayden, a burly 6-7, 230 pound power forward from Putnam City H.S. in Oklahoma City, Okla., said that he is leaning toward Oklahoma State entering the July evaluation period.

Hayden, who spoke to the Insiders Report from this past weekend's NBA Players Association Camp in Washington, D.C., said he has also been offered scholarships by Iowa State, Kansas and Kentucky, in addition to Okie State.

Hayden also expressed an interest in Michigan, Maryland and Notre Dame, though those programs have yet to offer him a scholarship.

Although Hayden appeared to be out of shape at the NBA Players Association Camp, he showed a relentless hustle on the offensive glass and a propensity to get to the free throw line. On the down side, his feet were slow on defense, and he generally did not do a good job of getting back on defense in a timely manner.

Hayden averaged 18 points per game as a junior at Putnam City. He will tour the country this summer with the Athletes First program out of Oklahoma, which will mean pitstops at the Nike Peach Jam, AAU Super Showcase and AAU Nationals. But first, he'll kick off the summer next week at the Nike All-American Camp in Indianapolis.

Nicknamed "Mad Dog" for his aggressive style of play, Hayden said he has a 3.0 GPA and scored an 18 on the ACT.