layden blocker

Michigan locked in their floor general of the future when Dug McDaniel verbally pledged to the Wolverines in June. Hello Post can be found here. I've had the opportunity to evaluate Dug in both high school and AAU settings during the last four months, so I had a pretty good feel for things but was excited to get a fresh look at him in Orlando at the NBPA Top 100 Camp this week. Full analysis below.

Highlights

The one constant in all my previous evaluations was the impressive playmaking for others and that was no different in Orlando. McDaniel had pinpoint dimes in tight-windows in ballscreen action and was just as impressive coming off down-screens on the curl and finding bigs with dumpoffs once a help defender arrived. Dug is undoubtedly a good shot-creator for others in both half-court and transition settings. His spatial awareness is superb and his ability to whip around one-hand passes with a live dribble is a real asset.

The Not So Good

For context, the coaches at the NBPA Top 100 camp are mostly current/former NBA players that are likely clueless about the reputations/rankings of the camp attendees. I'm quite sure NBA players aren't pressed about 60 of the top HS players in the country when they are facing the best players in the world on a daily basis. So from that perspective, I'm always interested to see their starting/closing lineups/lineup changes because presumably it is done objectively.

By the final game on Wednesday it was pretty clear that McDaniel wasn't among the upper-echelon of the 59 players in this setting. He wasn't in the starting or closing lineups (Cason Wallace was) for his original team (The Suns) and camp coordinators actually switched him to another team (76ers) for the Thursday session. Now, some of this was likely due to imbalance in team numbers/depth, but his performance played at least a small role. For further context, Jett Howard was also on Dug's original team (Suns) and was moved into the starting lineup during the second game of the camp as it was clear he was among the best five players on that team.

If you've seen any of my prior detailed reports, you know I've projected McDaniel as an upper 20s - lower 30s shooter from distance and this performance didn't do anything to change that. During the three games that I took in he struggled as a shooter, with multiple bad misses from both midrange and beyond the arch. Dug went 1/10 from three during those three games.

What's worried me in previous evals is the sheer number of off-balance runners and midrange shots he takes that have zero chance of going in. I saw more of the same in Orlando as you can see in the clip below.

These sort of off-balance attempts where McDaniel twists his body from right to left with a scissors kick of the right leg have been consistent in every setting I've viewed. As stated previously, these shots would be much better if he simply squared up and elevated straight in the air as opposed to fading/twisting. But the reality is his window of getting a clean look is very small because he's operating at such a size disadvantage. These shots are rushed for fear of getting his shot blocked or altered and I don't know if that lack of time will change at the next level.

Dug also struggled to finish at the basket. Not much need to get into detailed analysis/film on that. I don't think anyone is expecting him to be a good finisher in the B10 given his size.

Overall, I really like McDaniel as 4th/5th scoring option on a team where he's surrounded by talent. And that is likely going to be the case at Michigan. Dug is a guy that needs to have a vertical lob-threat to maximize his passing ability in addition to buying him a foot or two of space. Throw in some potent shooters and he projects to be a guy that may average 4-5 assists a game, while knocking down some pull-ups in ballscreen action and being a pest as an on-ball defender against smaller B10 point guards.

[Hit THE JUMP for Jett and some 23s]