Dyson Daniels

Daniels is a savvy and creative offensive player who lacks elite burst and athleticism, but who uses good countermoves, anticipation, and a lethal runner to be an effective offensive weapon.  Daniels often ran the Pick and Roll or took a Dribble Hand Off (DHO) to gain an advantage on the defense and then used his footwork, bevy of different moves, or decently broad shoulders to create space and angles to score around the hoop or get off his runner.  Daniels can continue to improve his handles, he’s not going to be mistaken for a savant like Harden or LaMelo, but he does mix up a good crossover, hesitation moves, changes pace adeptly, and makes decisive moves without wasted dribbles.  This is all necessary, as he’s a bit stiff inside (not especially fluid) and lacks the explosion, hang time or a lot of other traditional physical weapons to compensate.  Though to his credit, he does have the strength to drive and finish through contact.

Daniels’ big question mark is his shooting, his form is not broken (and improved over the course of the season), but he can still take too long and use too low / slow of a dip with some inconsistent form when rushed.  Daniels executes the other components of his likely connector role well though – he moves decently without the ball, is very active using his timing/strength to get offensive rebounds, and is one of the best passers in this draft class.  Daniels won’t be mistaken for CP3 or Giddy, but he makes advanced reads and a plethora of different passes – throwing three quarter court strikes after rebounds like Kevin Love, hitting cutters, skip passes, making anticipatory passes around the perimeter, feeding the post accurately, and generally showing an ability to process the defense quickly and make smart, accurate passes.  This is an effective weapon for him whether he’s the primary ball handler running the P&R and hitting the roll man or playing off ball and helping the team get a better shot.

Daniels is another player that will win a lot of fans with his defense.  Daniels plays a very fundamental game – helping, but constantly checking for his man and pointing while communicating with teammates.  Daniels blocks a lot of shots for a guard and has good instincts about when to help weak side.  He has good anticipation getting steals off digs, help defense, and jumping into passing lanes (he had a lot where he almost read the passers eyes like a cornerback and just jumps into the air and bats the ball down).  Daniels is already a strong team defender for a 19 year old, you can see him rotating well and even navigating complex offensive actions where he might cover his man, hedge on a screen and roll, cover a cutter, and get back to his man to contest a jumper all on the same play. Daniels has good lateral speed for a SG/SF though not elite (and he can be beaten by quicker guards).  However, he has the motor, length, physicality/grit, and strength to help compensate and was able to make a nice impact with an Ignite team that struggled with some very poor defenders (see Micheal Foster section).

One final note, Daniels, while communicative, is not the most emotive player.  He’s a bit of a Harrison Barnes type, who shows up, plays hard, and comes off as a consummate professional.