Australian guard/forward Dyson Daniels, who played with G League Ignite this past season as team’s de facto point guard, is on the Knicks‘ radar with the No. 11 pick, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post. Daniels is a defensive-minded initiator who’s a strong rebounder and passer, and the Knicks have been looking for a lead guard for a long time.
“I wanted to show NBA people he was a point guard,” Ignite head coach Jason Hart told The Post during Wednesday’s workouts. “So now when he gets drafted, they can put him at another position, but I think he’s a point guard because he can guard them. And he’s a natural pass-first type guy. So I played him at point guard. That’s what he looked to me. I was a point guard. And he had the same qualities point guards have. He just happened to be 6-7 [Daniels measured 6-7 ¹/₂ in shoes Wednesday].”
Hart added that Daniels brings intangible qualities and wisdom that belie his young age (he turned 19 in March).
“He’s a young player with a lot of wisdom and know-how,” Hart said, per Berman. “That’s why a lot of NBA teams are intrigued by him. He knows how to do a lot of things to make a successful team. With his size, skill set and being an elite defender, he has the upside where his offense will catch up.”
Here’s more on the Knicks:
- The Knicks are keeping tabs on several players who might land at the back-end of the lottery if they keep their first-round pick, including Daniels, Baylor forward Jeremy Sochan, Memphis center Jalen Duren, and Duke center Mark Williams, writes Steve Popper of Newsday.
- Fred Katz of The Athletic lists 10 prospects who might be a good fit in New York, including the aforementioned players and some new ones, such as Ohio State guard Malaki Branham and Wisconsin guard Johnny Davis.
- In a separate story for the Post, Berman speculates that the Knicks might revisit trade talks with the Pacers centered around Myles Turner and/or Malcolm Brogdon, both of whom the Knicks are reportedly interested in. Brogdon might be more considered more expendable after Indiana acquired Tyrese Haliburton in February.
- The team never made an official announcement about it, but the Knicks have hired Tim Hardaway to serve as a scout, and he’s been interviewing draft prospects at the combine this week, sources tell Berman (Twitter link). The elder Hardaway was recently elected to the Hall of Fame.