Nigel Hayes will have lofty expectations to fulfill this season.

Hayes, a men’s basketball junior forward, earned preseason All-American honors Monday from Sporting News.

In his first two seasons at University of Wisconsin, Hayes shared the spotlight with formidable players like Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker, who are now in the NBA. He still managed an impressive stat line, averaging 12.4 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game.

Prior to last season, Dekker (second-team) and Kaminsky (third-team) were also named to Sporting News’ All-American squads.

Hayes shot 49.7 percent from the field and went 40-of-101 (39.6 percent) from three-point range. Hayes also flourished on the defensive end of the court last season, leading the Badgers in steals (34) and finishing third in blocks (16).

But in 2015-16, Hayes will be one of the few upperclassmen on a young Badger squad. He will have plenty of experience, with this season coming on the heels of back-to-back Final Four runs and a 2015 outright Big Ten Championship.

Also named to the preseason All-American team were Ron Baker (Wichita State), Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia), Georges Niang (Iowa State) and Marcus Paige (North Carolina).