Landry Fields: Hawks scouting department ‘crushed it’ finding Dyson Daniels

Landry Fields: Hawks scouting department ‘crushed it’ finding Dyson Daniels

Nearly 10 months ago, the Atlanta Hawks finally decided to cut the cord on the Dejounte Murray experiment, trading him to the New Orleans Pelicans in a four-player, two-pick swap

One player who went to Atlanta in return was guard Dyson Daniels, a diamond in the rough who never could find a consistent role in the Pelicans’ rotation. Needless to say, he’s blossomed and one could argue he’s been the best player among the players involved in the trade this season.

Hawks general manager Landry Fields recently spoke to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about Daniels. Fields not only said that acquiring the Australian guard was non-negotiable, but credited the Hawks scouting department for seeking the player:

“(Daniels) was one guy that, when we were engaged with the Pelicans, he was a must for us to be in that deal,” Fields recently said to Ken Sugiura The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Just, we saw the archetype, we knew who he was as a person — doing our homework — and just the type of player that he was then and what he could be in a change of environment. (The Hawks scouting department) did a really good job in that.

“We see the indicators and areas that he could grow. We’re looking at what his floor is, and we really liked that. And that takes a lot of work in combing through a number of different games and situations and not just watching highlights. … I think our scouting group crushed it on this one.”

Through 64 games, he’s averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and a league-most 3.0 steals per game this season, shooting 48.5 percent and 34.5 percent from 3-point range (3.1 3PA).

Daniels, who turned 22-years-old on March 17, has been one of the most disruptive point-of-attack defenders in the NBA. He’s already smashed the record for most deflections in a single season since the NBA started tracking the statistic in 2015-16; Daniels has totaled 382 deflections, 134 more than any other player (Kelly Oubre Jr. is second — 248) and 67 more than any other player ever (Robert Covington — 315 in 2017-18).

He’s consistently everywhere on defense. He not only does a great job dislodging the rock from opposing ballhandlers on- and off-ball, but does a great job pressuring them and staying in front without forgoing ground. Additionally, few players can snake screens and cause chaos with his level of instincts, coordination and balance, let alone do it at 6-foot-8.

The Hawks still aren’t a world-beating defense–they’re 17th–but they have drastically improved after being a bottom-five defense in two of their previous three seasons. Daniels is a menace defensively and deserves to be apart of the Defensive Player of the Year conversation with Evan Mobley and Jaren Jackson Jr., among others.

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