Landry Fields Is Excited About Getting Dyson Daniels "His Defensive Versatility is Something that stands out"

Atlanta acquired Daniels in the deal that send Dejounte Murray to the Pelicans

Jun 28, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks XXX at the Emory Sports Medicine Complex. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports Zaccharie Risacher Nikola Djurisic Landry Fields / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Hawks made one of the biggest moves of the NBA offseason by trading Dejounte Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans and getting back Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance, EJ Liddell, Cody Zeller, and two first round picks. It had long been rumored the Hawks were looking to breakup the backcourt duo of Murray and Trae Young and Murray was the player who would be traded.

While the first round picks are certainly exciting, the best piece of this deal could end up being Daniels. Only two years into his NBA career, Daniels is one of the best perimeter defenders in the BA and seems like a perfect fit next to Young. His offense and three-point shooting are question marks, but playing with a playmaker like Young should get Daniels some terrific looks.

Today, the Hawks held a media availablity and general manager Landry Fields spoke publicly for the first time since the Murray trade. When asked about Daniels and what made him a great fit for the Hawks, here is what Fields had to say:

"His defensive versatility is something that really stands out. His shooting has gotten better, it is something that we think can get an uptick in him as time goes on with his development. So, we are able to help him stay the course defensively and then give him some offensive adjustments there."

Hawks GM Landry Fields had a lot of good things to say about Dyson Daniels:

“His defensive versatility is something that really stands out” pic.twitter.com/lDqxHSHuPN

— jackson caudell (@jacksoncaudell) July 10, 2024

When asked about what went into the decision to trade Murray, this is what Fields had to say:

"Just evaluating where we are at. It was a hard decision, it was challenging, we knew that where we ultimately wanted to be, was going to require some challenging decisions, just not being at that point currently where we felt like we could continue on with what we have so we wanted to reshape some things and this is an unfortunate part of the business. Dejounte is a fantastic player and we are excited for him and his journey onto New Orleans and we are also very excited about the guys that we got back. We got some assets back too that are going to be helpful to us. We wish him nothing but the best, he and his family have been nothing but great for us."

Daniels saw action in 61 games (16 starts) during the 2023-24 season, posting career highs of 5.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals in 22.3 minutes. He scored 10-or-more points in a career-best 13 games during the 2023-24 campaign, netting a career-high 17 points against the Dallas Mavericks on Nov. 12.

A 2024 Panini Rising Star, Daniels recorded 1.4 steals per game during the 2023-24 campaign, the 10th-most in the NBA, and owned a .341 steal percentage last season, ranking fifth in the league (min. 50 GP). He recorded a career-high six steals at Utah on Nov. 25, becoming the only second-year player to swipe at least six steals in a single game this past season and one of only two first-or-second year players to do so, joining Victor Wembanyama. He recorded all six steals in the first half, tied for the most steals in a single half in the NBA this past season and tied for the second-most steals in a single half in New Orleans history.

Selected eighth overall in the 2022 NBA Draft by the Pelicans, the 6-7 guard owns career averages of 4.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 20.0 minutes in 120 games (27 starts). Prior to the Pelicans, he spent the 2021-22 season with the NBA G League Ignite, where he was named to the 2022 Clorox Rising Stars roster.

Daniels, a native of Bendigo, Australia, played for Australia in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.