Hawks' Dyson Daniels Named Under-the-Radar Player Who Can Swing This NBA Season

The Athletic's John Hollinger, a former NBA executive, named Atlanta Hawks forward Dyson Daniels an under-the-radar player who can swing this season. 

Daniels is a talented two-way player, but his jumper needs a lot of work. 

If Daniels can be a threat from deep, watch out. 

"With Daniels in the first year of a four-year, $100 million extension, he has to offer some kind of spacing component to stay on the court in a playoff series. Can he, at least, be a one-in-three proposition?"

For the Hawks last season, Daniels played in 76 games. He averaged 11.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.4 blocks per game while shooting 51.7% from the field, 18.8% from beyond the arc and 61.5% from the free-throw line. 

The 23-year-old Daniels made the All-Defensive Second Team last season. He made the All-Defensive First Team and won the Most Improved Player of the Year award in his first season with the Hawks. 

Atlanta lost to the New York Knicks in the first round of the 2026 playoffs, but remember, the Hawks were the only team to beat the Knicks twice in the 2026 postseason.

That shows how good the Hawks will be moving forward. 

The Hawks had a busy offseason. They signed CJ McCollum to an extension, re-signed Jock Landale, acquired Aaron Wiggins and Lu Dort from the Oklahoma City Thunder and drafted Kingston Flemings, Zuby Ejiofor and Henri Veesaar in the 2026 draft.    

Moving forward, Atlanta's core is Dort, Wiggins, McCollum, Jalen Johnson, Daniels, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Onyeka Okongwu.    

Atlanta is expected to start McCollum, Alexander-Walker, Daniels, Johnson and Okongwu this season. 

The Hawks begin the 2026-27 regular season on the road against the Orlando Magic.

"I don’t compare ourselves to others," McCollum told HoopsHype about the Hawks' future. "Right now, it’s about focusing on getting better individually and collectively. We can’t control how other teams look. You can control your approach to the game. Teams will get better and evolve.      

"For us, it’s about focusing on improving our intangibles, understanding our schemes, and what Quin wants from us. Then, building on the momentum and experience that we had playing in the playoffs in a big environment on the road and in our home games. We played against a team that won the NBA Finals. All those things help you as you go into a new season."

Atlanta's future is led by Johnson, who had a fantastic 2025-26 season for the Hawks. He averaged 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game while shooting 48.9% from the field, 35.2% from beyond the arc and 78.8% from the free-throw line.

The Duke product recorded 49 double-doubles and 13 triple-doubles in 72 games.

The 24-year-old Johnson made his first All-Star and All-NBA team last season. The swingman made the All-NBA Third Team.

As long as he continues to improve each year, the sky is the limit for Johnson, who averaged 19.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game in the 2026 playoffs against the Knicks. 

The Hawks haven't won a playoff series since 2021. For that to change in 2027, Johnson and Daniels must be a consistent threats from deep. 

Atlanta was sixth in the NBA in points per game and 18th in points per game allowed last season. Let's see what those ranks are this season in Year 5 of the Quin Snyder era.