Hawks’ Dyson Daniels grateful for new deal, excited for what’s to come
One word kept coming up when Hawks guard Dyson Daniels spoke with Atlanta media members following the news of his rookie contract extension on Tuesday.
Grateful.
“I’m super grateful,” he said. “And looking back two or three years ago, I wouldn’t have thought I would have been in this position I am today. Just to be here with this organization, guys that trust me, on and off the floor that I can go to work with, and I know that everyone’s gonna have my back.”
On Monday, the Hawks announced that they signed Daniels to a contract. While the team did not disclose Daniels’ contract details, the deal is a four-year contract extension worth $100 million, according to a league source familiar with the situation.
That’s life-changing money for Daniels, who moved from his native Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, when he was 18 to play with the now-defunct G League Ignite in 2021.
The Pelicans drafted Daniels eighth overall in the 2022 NBA draft, joining a crowded room of wings on the depth chart. The 22-year-old had to fight for playing time, leaning on his defense to stay on the floor.
But he couldn’t quite get his offense going, averaging 4.8 points on 43.5% overall shooting.
Then, the Hawks acquired Daniels in an offseason trade, and he took the opportunity and ran. He more than doubled his offensive production, improving his scoring by plus-8.3 points per game.
En route to winning the NBA’s Most Improved Player award last season, Daniels averaged career highs of 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and three steals on career-best shooting of 49.3% from the field and 34% from 3.
“I‘m grateful to be here,” he said. “I’m grateful that I’m gonna hopefully be here a long time. I’m just excited for the season now. It’s a big weight off the shoulders that we can go to battle. And there’s a lot of leadership roles I want to take on this team. And I think being in the position I’m in now, I’m able to use my voice and lead by action a lot more. I’m excited.”
Hawks coach Quin Snyder sees that, too.
“I think on some level, symbolically, too, I feel like one of the things that Dyson can help provide this team is leadership,” Snyder said. “Leadership takes on many shapes and forms, whether it’s what you do or what you say, or a combination of both. So pleased that I think an affirmation on that level as well.”
Snyder noted that, based on his knowledge of Daniels, the guard will have turned the page to what the team wants to accomplish this season. As much as Daniels talked about being grateful for the organization’s belief in him, he also repeated how much excitement he had for the season ahead.
The Hawks have a roster set up to compete much longer than they have over the last few years. The team will focus on taking the season one game at a time and one day at a time. But it has still led to a buzz that they’re all feeding off of.
“Just the energy the guys are bringing, this is like a real buzz to the group,” Daniels said. “Everyone’s excited, everyone’s ready to go. And yeah, you have preseason, your training camp and stuff, and that’s kind of the real grit and grind, get ready for the season, and then come game one, you’ve got to be ready.
“So, it all happens (Wednesday). Everyone’s ready to go. Everyone’s excited. So, I think just having that energy, that feel that, you know, guys really want to come in and play winning basketball is fun to be a part of.”
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