Australia was well represented last night, on the floor of the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, on the occasion of a rather successful “Rising Stars Challenge” for its first under its new configuration. Indeed, the rookie of the Thunder, Josh Giddey, was accompanied by a compatriot a little less known, for the moment, to NBA observers: Dyson Daniels.
1m98 back, the young Australian (19 years old on March 17) is playing this season in the G-League, within the “Team Ignite”. Selected by the NBA, along with his teammates MarJon Beauchamp, Jaden Hardy and Scoot Henderson, to take part in this young game which was getting a makeover, Daniels convinced for his first appearance among NBA players.
After the meeting, the native of Bendigo did not hide his pleasure at having rubbed shoulders with his future opponents in the NBA for the first time. ” There were a lot of very good players on the pitch, and it was physical, really physical. So I will continue to work in the gym to strengthen myself physically admitted the Australian, before acknowledging that the fast game of the Great League was going to ask him for some time to adapt. ” The speed of play, the many round trips and the one-on-one defense, I’m not totally used to it yet. At least not at this frequency. But it was nice to immerse yourself in this game, it’s a good learning to continue to progress.”
Within Team Barry, who won the mini-tournament, he first compiled 4 points (2/3 on shots), 2 rebounds and 2 assists during the semi-final won by his team against Team Payton. Then, during the final against Team Isiah, he started and compiled 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks.
Of course, these stats are to be put in the context of the evening, placed under the sign of the show, in the good tradition of the All-Star Weekend. Nevertheless, the boy’s good passages have made it possible to highlight his potential as an “all-around” player, which is increasingly appealing to the “scouts” of the NBA franchises.
An “all-around” profile that charms the NBA
In 14 G-League appearances with the Ignite this season, Dyson Daniels is averaging 11.3 points (44.9% on 9.9 shooting), 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.9 steals in 31 minutes. He’s a full-back, capable of doing a bit of everything on offense and weighing in on defense, and fits into the mold of the all-around player that NBA franchises are so fond of today.
If his outside shot is still an important building block to become a forward that weighs in the NBA (25.5% on 3.6 award-winning shots), he already presents, at only 18 years old, a profile built to succeed in the North American league.
Sometimes compared to Malcolm Brodgon for the “all-around” rear aspect, or to Dejounte Murray for his defensive potential, it is no surprise that his name comes up very regularly around the 10th position of the future Draft: The Athletic notably places him 11th in his last “Mock Draft”.
” His stats aren’t top-notch, but Daniels has a game that suggests he’ll be an extremely useful rotation player in his NBA debut. He understands the game very well, and his offensive readings are very good. […] On top of that, he has a solid record for the title of best defensive back in this Draft class. delivers journalist Sam Vecenie in his “Mock Draft”. ” He peaks at 1m98, as a fullback capable of defending positions 1 to 3 on the outside, who can easily get rid of screens and can break the opposing offensive dynamic with his defensive rotations.“
