Dyson Daniels and the Art of the Steal

Australian 21-year-old Dyson Daniels is on historic pace for steals. NBA All-Star and 1985-86 Defensive Player of the Year Alvin Robertson holds the record for steals in a single season at 301 (the same season).

Robertson averaged 3.7 steals per game in '85-86 and Dyson is right there at 3.1 steals per game through 33 contests for the Atlanta Hawks this season. Daniels already has 103, 33 more steals than Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (70), OKC teammate Jalen Williams (62), and Orlando's Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (61).

At this pace, Daniels is a virtual lock for The All-NBA Defense First Team.

Dyson's highlight strip of the season so far was on De'Aaron Fox on the last play of the game, less than a second left on the clock, against the Kings to seal the Hawks 109-108 win on Tuesday, November 19. It was his only steal of the game but worth the wait. Fox was open for the game-winner but Daniels ended it with exceptional timing and quick hands.

Daniels delivered a career-high eight steals on Christmas Eve against Minnesota and he has snatched six three times — November 13 against Boston, November 16 against Washington and again on December 22 against Phoenix — as well as seven against Detroit.

He has averaged 3.3 steals since the start of December.

Key Details

Name: Dyson James Daniels
Age: 21
Team: Atlanta Hawks
Position: Shooting guard
Size: 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Weight: 199 lb (90 kg)

Daniels also became the first player since Robertson (1986) to record six-plus steals in four straight games.

"The more steals I get, the more I'm able to get out in transition," Daniels said.

"That's how a lot of my points are coming, breaking the paint, getting in transition, and getting to the rim.

"I'm just playing free, being myself, making plays on the defensive end.

"We got a really good team. They take feedback really well.

"I've always been a pretty good vocal leader growing up.

"You see all the great leaders that make mistakes, they don't make them again because they communicate with their teammates.

"It's good playing with this team because everyone takes that feedback and implements it."

Daniels is averaging a league-best 3.1 steals per game.

"His ability to impact the game is unique," Hawks head coach Quinn Snyder said.

"He's got a good sense of how to be solid and not gamble, but to also use his anticipation opportunistically to impact the game with steals.

"He's appreciated on a lot of levels."

Why Dyson Daniels is elite on the defensive end

1. Daniels sees the game one play ahead. This is rare, high IQ basketball. He doesn't rely solely on his physical gifts to make plays on either end of the floor. All the greats have it and possibly the greatest all-time is Larry Bird. Larry didn't have the athleticism of his rivals but what he did have was a complete understanding of the rhythm of the game, how one action leads to the next. This is an extraordinary advantage given the speed of the NBA. Defense is generally reactionary, a defender responding to the player they're guarding, but Daniels is opposite — he's proactive, constantly making reads, always one action ahead.
2. Daniels plays at his own speed. To the eye, it appears Daniels is playing at a slower pace than anyone else. But he's not, his quickness is perpetual, which is why on TV it seems "slower". He's never sped up nor slowed down — a metronome — because he's aways one play ahead. Daniels is never out of control. He's travelling at the speed required within the existing play because he's already ahead of the offense, waiting for it to unfold to impact the outcome.
3. Core strength. Players are taught from U12s to stay in their seat on defense, to get low and stay low. It often leads to players bending at the waist under fatigue. Daniels doesn't. His core is granite and conditioning elite. Daniels stays in his seat but his back is board straight, perfectly balanced, with active hands.
4. Footwork. Because Dyson has incredible core strength, it translates into his footwork. He may look too upright at times but his feet are always below his core. It's often referred to as a player's "centre of gravity". For Dyson his ability to move left and right (laterally) gives him an edge against the people he guards.
5. Quick hands. Dyson has active hands and they are fast. He keeps his hands constantly in the path of the ball, up and in, on the ball handler to be as disruptive as possible. This constant pressure leads to deflections and ultimately steals.
6. Daniels stays connected. The modern NBA game is dominated by high pick and rolls with it near impossible to go under given everyone can shoot it. Dyson has the ability to stay connected to the ball handler, slipping contact, so coming out of that action, Dyson is more often than not on the hip of the shot creator to impact the shot or pass.
7. He doesn't gamble. Daniels makes reads. He doesn't cheat in the lane, or chase steals but he does leave the player he's guarding — more often than not the other team's best scorer — to make plays on the ball. This shows extraordinarily high IQ because mis-reads always leads to open shots for his primary assignment. But his ability to recover or impact the ball makes the return pass difficult.
8. Desire. To be a great defender, you have to want it and Dyson clearly does. Defense is effort, possession after possession. The best defenders give their opponents no rest, constantly challenging, bumping and up in their space. This takes work and Dyson is putting the work in.
9. He studies film. Clearly, Dyson is a student of the game. He knows player traits, how they handle the ball, what they do in different situations, how they bring the ball up the floor and how the play with their back to the basket. He's putting the work in on and off the floor.

Trade that changed Daniels' career trajectory

It's hard to argue the Atlanta Hawks came up with the ultimate steal. The Hawks acquired Dyson Daniels, EJ Liddell, Larry Nance Jr., Cody Zeller, and Two Future First Round Draft Picks from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for All-Star guard Dejounte Murray.

The first steal of the 2024-25 season.

The art of the steal

Combine all nine of the above traits and the fact Dyson is 6'7" with long arms into game situations, play after play, and it's easy to understand why Daniels is averaging 3.0 steals per game. He's getting more minutes than he did in his first two years in the league, which translates to more opportunities. More time on the floor, playing in a role primarily off the ball on offense when Trae Young is running the point has put Dyson in a position to be successful and to amplify his strengths. Not having to constantly trigger the offense also starts him in a better position in transition defense: execute sets and get back behind the ball.

Instinct, anticipation, spacial awareness and a deep understand of the rhythm and flow of the game — at high speed — are Dyson's gifts. It separates the good from great and given Daniels is only 21, that feel will only get better. For AFL fans privileged enough to see the Brisbane Lions win three straight flags in 2001, 2002, 2003 the player in that side with the same instincts and feel for the game was Darryl White.

White would play a kick off the footy, patrolling a half-back flank, and would be a ball magnet. His role is now a staple in the modern AFL, but taught. Darryl's ability to be in the right spot at the right time was instinctual to grab a mark and rebound the footy. It also helped that he moved like a Rolls Royce.

Darryl grew up in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, playing local basketball and as a laconic 16-year-old at 6'2" could already dunk the ball (easily!). When the inspiration struck, Darryl would pull off spectacular one-hand and two-handed jams in the multi-purpose gym at Sadadeen Secondary College during lunch.

Darryl's son William McDowell-White, 26, played for the New Zealand Breakers and now ALBA Berlin in the EuroLeague and has many of his father's same instincts. It also helps that William's mother, Bianca, was also an elite basketballer in Darwin, Northern Territory.

Dyson Daniels revealed his goals early

"I pride my game on my defense," Daniels said during the Hawks' Media Day earlier this year.

"I want to take the challenge of guarding the best player every night.

"Being that kind of that backbone for guys like Trae [Young], being able to switch things one through four, defend bigger people, defend smaller guards so just being everywhere on the floor."

The hype is real, and it's justified

Rightfully, Dyson is attracting attention and plenty of headlines. But it's not just a hot start to the 2024-25 NBA season, it's a legit surfacing of his elite skills on the defensive end of the floor. Alvin Robertson, then 23, is one of only four NBA players — the only non-centre — to record a quadruple-double: 20 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 steals for the Spurs against the Phoenix Suns on February 18, 1986. The centres all delivered their quadruple-doubles with blocks, not steals.

Robertson averaged 14 points, 5.2 rebounds, five assists and 2.7 steals over his 779-game career.

This season, Daniels at 21 is averaging 12.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 3.1 steals.

Is the insinuation Daniels is a quadruple-double waiting to happen, no (well, maybe) but eight steals, seven steals (Detroit), six steals (Bulls) and six steals (Boston) in three consecutive games in November is the pilot light.

In the meantime, Dyson Daniels heading into the second half of the season on track to win first team All-Defense honours and that bodes well for both the Hawks and the Boomers.

Daniels will be 25 in 2028 and so will Josh Giddey. The Boomers likely backcourt at the Los Angeles Olympic Games will be tough and will likely include a NBA Defensive Player of the Year (at least once).

About the Author

Peter Brown is the head coach of the Sydney Comets Women’s Youth League team in the Waratah Basketball League in NSW. He is also the assistant coach for the Comets NBL1 women’s team in the NBL East Conference. Peter is a 30-year journalist, starting as a sports reporter at the NT News in the early 1990s. He played junior basketball for the Northern Territory at national championships from U16 to U20 and for the Territory’s senior men’s team at numerous international tournaments. Peter has been a basketball fan since the early 80s, especially the NBA. Basketball is his passion — and his opinions his own. Email peter.brown@basketball.com.au with feedback. Any email feedback on articles sent to Peter can be published on basketball.com.au for others to read.