Hawks guard Dyson Daniels is this year’s Most Improved Player, the NBA announced (via Twitter).
Daniels blossomed after coming to Atlanta in an offseason trade. He became a full-time starter for the first time in his third NBA season and posted career highs with 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 76 games with .493/.340/.593 shooting splits.
With 229 steals, Daniels led the league by a wide margin and was named as a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year honors as well as Most Improved.
Daniels captured 44 first-place votes, 36 for second place and four for third to easily win the award with 332 total points. The other finalists were Clippers center Ivica Zubac (23-18-17-186) and Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (15-11-14-122). Nuggets guard Christian Braun (9-15-30-120) and Lakers guard Austin Reaves (8-4-12-39) rounded out the top five.
Also receiving first-place votes were Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley, Rockets swingman Amen Thompson, Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, Heat guard Tyler Herro and Bulls guard Josh Giddey.
The Pelicans selected Daniels with the eighth pick in the 2022 draft, but he wasn’t able to fully develop his game in two seasons with New Orleans. That changed after he was sent to Atlanta last July in a trade for Dejounte Murray. As a 6’8″ defensive specialist, Daniels was a perfect fit alongside Trae Young in the Hawks’ backcourt, and playing alongside Young helped him significantly improve his shooting numbers.
Daniels, 22, will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer.