The Mavericks could use another offensive threat to pair next to Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis — someone to develop into a third wheel once Tim Hardaway Jr. inevitably departs or declines. While I’m not the biggest fan of Jaden McDaniels, he’s a unique prospect who has captured the imaginations of plenty.
At 6-foot-10, McDaniels is a long and gifted scorer on the perimeter. He can comfortably shoot over the top of most defenders, and he’s a smooth ball-handler who can run pick-and-rolls or create in isolation. He’s also skinny, which meant premature (and inevitably ridiculous) Kevin Durant comparisons in high school.
Once billed as a top-10 prospect, McDaniels bombed as a freshman. He was wildly inconsistent, both in terms of effort and production, in his one season at Washington. Even so, he’s still expected to go in this range, and Dallas could buy into the upside of another jumbo-sized scorer.