Jaden McDaniels’ stock is all over the place. Some have him outside the first round, while others harken back to his days as a consensus top-10 prospect. The end result will likely fall somewhere in the middle, and Dallas is a feasible landing spot.
At 6-foot-11, McDaniels has tremendous size for a wing. There is an aesthetic smoothness to his game, which garnered ill-conceived Kevin Durant comparisons back in high school. He can create off the bounce and use his height to his advantage, scoring easily over smaller defenders.
The red flags surrounding McDaniels are simply too prominent to ignore. His work ethic and desire to win have long been questioned, and he did little to soothe those concerns at Washington. He has yet to translate innate talent and physical gifts into a consistent impact on winning. The hope in Dallas is simple. Next to Luka Doncic and in a professional environment, he puts the pieces together and becomes a viable third wheel in a dynamic offense.