RealGM

JADEN McDANIELS
6'10" // 200 lbs. // 7'1 w/s // 8'11 s/r

comp:poor man's durant

O
He looks fairly comfortable handling the ball, shooting off the dribble and spotting up for Js from the 3-pt line. He has also has a nice soft touch on his J. His shot is really hard to guard as he has a high release point at 6'10. He also is very capable of making some extremely tough shots. He's one of those shooters that can adjust his shot in the air, similar to a Kevin Durant or Kobe Bryant. He also does a good job of using jab steps to get his defenders off-balance and then taking a dribble and pulling up right over them.

D
He projects to be a plus-defender at the 3 and maybe 4 if he gets stronger. From watching him, it looks like he's just figuring out how to get comfortable using his long arms and legs so I think there's some natural development to be had there. He looks pretty good recovering when he does get beat as he using his long arms to affect shots at the rim.

...

last 10 (per 40)

bpm: 2.9 (o: 1.9 // d: 1.0)
usg%: 26.5
pts: 19.6
asts: 2.7
rebs: 7.5
stls: 0.8
blks: 1.4
tov: 4.4
fg%: 41.2
fta: 5.5
ft%: 82.1 (32-39)
ftr: 36.1%
3pa: 6.6
3g%: 36.2 (17-47)
rim%: 68.2% (15-22)
ast%: 15.1
tov%: 22.5

...

The biggest thing I don't like about him is feel for the game. He will eventually add the strength needed to play in this league effectively but that feel for the game is bad.

He's not Durant or J. Issac but he's not Perry Jones and Anthony "Magic" Randolph either.

He's closer to Issac and Durant but not close to them in feel for the game. The talent and skill is higher than Issac but worse than Durant.

I don't know where he falls on the spectrum but he's likely going to end up in that same range with someone like former Hawk legend, Josh Smith. Not the same player obviously.

He's probably the most mopey player in the Draft. I have a feeling he's going to be one of those"issues" guys.

I think he's a clearly better prospect than his brother Jalen. He's more fluid and has better perimeter skills than Jonathan Isaac. He's a good shooter, but not as good as Brandon Ingram, especially off the dribble. His outcome could be a slightly lesser version of Ingram, but it's going to be 2 - 3 years before he has the physical maturity and strength to play consistent minutes. Note that both Ingram and Isaac struggled their first two seasons. The concern with him is whether his frame allows him to add enough strength to drive and finish at an NBA level. McDaniels' natural position is probably the 3.

I like players who have the ability to find space and step into an open 18 or 20-foot jumper. I think that shot is almost always available, and it's a luxury for teams to take advantage. McDaniels can do that.

I worry about players with that body type having knee injuries due to the torque that's put on the knee when they cut hard. Both Isaac and Nerlens Noel tore ACLs, for example. So I think you have to price that in to the decision to draft him. I think he gets picked in the 15 - 20 range, around the same range as Aaron Nesmith and Saddiq Bey, though his talent could put him closer to the top 10.

EvanZ wrote:He's probably the most mopey player in the Draft. I have a feeling he's going to be one of those"issues" guys.

People said the same thing about Ingram. It’s just the way they look. Some guys are just desensitized.

isn't a poor man's Durant just Brandon Ingram

he's not as good as Ingram either, so he's more a poor man's Ingram than a poor man's Durant

He's gonna go a lot higher than I have him ranked, that's for sure.

Poor man's Brandon Ingram/Rashard Lewis.

King Ken wrote:The biggest thing I don't like about him is feel for the game. He will eventually add the strength needed to play in this league effectively but that feel for the game is bad.

He's not Durant or J. Issac but he's not Perry Jones and Anthony "Magic" Randolph either.

He's closer to Issac and Durant but not close to them in feel for the game. The talent and skill is higher than Issac but worse than Durant.

I don't know where he falls on the spectrum but he's likely going to end up in that same range with someone like former Hawk legend, Josh Smith. Not the same player obviously.

FWIW, I think McDaniels’ game suffered because of the Huskies not having a point guard all of a sudden. Green played his last game on 01/05 and you can see that McDaniels stats take a pretty big hit and then he finds his footing after about 10 games.

Would love to see the Blazers pick him up at 14. On paper he's a great long term fit at SF for the Blazers. The Blazers did a great job of developing Crabbe and Layman into guys who played well enough to get handsome 2nd contracts.

getrichordie wrote:

EvanZ wrote:He's probably the most mopey player in the Draft. I have a feeling he's going to be one of those"issues" guys.

People said the same thing about Ingram. It’s just the way they look. Some guys are just desensitized.

It's not just the way he looks though. I saw him live against Stanford and like even during warmups he doesn't talk to any of his teammates basically. He's kind of a loner. Never smiles. Seems very mopey like I said.

EvanZ wrote:

getrichordie wrote:

EvanZ wrote:He's probably the most mopey player in the Draft. I have a feeling he's going to be one of those"issues" guys.

People said the same thing about Ingram. It’s just the way they look. Some guys are just desensitized.

It's not just the way he looks though. I saw him live against Stanford and like even during warmups he doesn't talk to any of his teammates basically. He's kind of a loner. Never smiles. Seems very mopey like I said.

I don’t put any stock in to stuff like that. Not in a 19 y.o.

He is a very interested prospect. He is skinny but he is tall and has guard skills. He has enough handles to be a guard but also has enough size to play in the post (he will need to bulk up his first few years in the NBA). He can play all five positions in a small ball line up.

He is in my top ten draft board but I also wouldn't be surprised if a team makes him a top 2 pick because he is the new generation basketball player, which is a do everything, positionless player.

I see more OPJ or Tayshaun Prince type upside that 'poor man's Durant' or Ingram, etc.

babyjax13 wrote:I see more OPJ or Tayshaun Prince type upside that 'poor man's Durant' or Ingram, etc.

Interesting comp. I see McDaniels developing into more of a dead eye shooter than OPJ. I also think his defensive ceiling is higher. I think he can guard 1 through 3 at the next level once he puts on some weight. If he can get to 210-215, he'll be fine. I like the Prince comp a lot better. That's a good one.

getrichordie wrote:

babyjax13 wrote:I see more OPJ or Tayshaun Prince type upside that 'poor man's Durant' or Ingram, etc.

Interesting comp. I see McDaniels developing into more of a dead eye shooter than OPJ. I also think his defensive ceiling is higher. I think he can guard 1 through 3 at the next level once he puts on some weight. If he can get to 210-215, he'll be fine. I like the Prince comp a lot better. That's a good one.

OPJ is one of the best spot up shooters in the league, career 40 percent from 3.

babyjax13 wrote:

getrichordie wrote:

babyjax13 wrote:I see more OPJ or Tayshaun Prince type upside that 'poor man's Durant' or Ingram, etc.

Interesting comp. I see McDaniels developing into more of a dead eye shooter than OPJ. I also think his defensive ceiling is higher. I think he can guard 1 through 3 at the next level once he puts on some weight. If he can get to 210-215, he'll be fine. I like the Prince comp a lot better. That's a good one.

OPJ is one of the best spot up shooters in the league, career 40 percent from 3.

What I'm saying is that McDaniels is going to be able to score from all over the floor. On the move, spot up, floaters, scoop layups, etc. He can adjust his shot mid-air and still hit.

One of the harder prospects to gauge his potential and where he'll fit in.

Probably the next Jeff Green with intriguing talent, while not able to put it together. If he gets his strength issue in order, he has a good chance to be a nice player.

i thought the draft this year was a toss up but he was my pick before the season started as one player who had the potential to really elevate with the natural tools he has with his size and his current skillset. unfortunately he made like zero progress while at washington while being hampered with i think an ankle injury he suffered during the season. pac 12 competition this year wasn't exactly strong so he didn't make the strongest impression for me. he's still young, still experimenting with what works and what doesn't, and in general still learning a lot about the game. i don't know if it's the system or the environment but he never looked that comfortable at UW.

if he does have any motivation left in the tank, best case scenario is his progression might take a few years but on a consistent upward trajectory similar to brandon ingram's in the nba. i have a feeling that there's a decent chance he won't turn into the player that i want him to be but he'll have a focused enough skillset to stay in the league.

He is a legit top 5 talent in this draft. Anyone drafting him outside of the top 10 will be getting the steal of this draft looking back in 5 years. Once his body fills out and he becomes comfortable with the NBA style of play he will be a very special talent. No one in this draft has as much upside as Jaden McDaniels...word up!!