From one sporting freak to another, Aussie NBA star Dyson Daniels has heaped praise on his former junior footy teammate and Western Bulldogs unicorn Sam Darcy.
Daniels, from Bendigo in regional Victoria, grew up playing footy for almost a decade before picking the much more lucrative path to basketball stardom.
A breakout third NBA season for the former No.8 pick saw him win the Most Improved Player award, and threaten to win the Defensive Player of the Year, putting him on a path to a future contract worth well over $AU100 million.
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But Daniels explained on Fox Footy’s AFL 360 part of his ongoing footy fandom involves his friendships with players he grew up alongside, like Darcy.
“We played under-12 SSV (School Sport Victoria) footy together. So obviously Sam back there, known him for a while, obviously come through the ranks, and look what he’s doing now on the big stage. So it’s good to see him killing it,” Daniels said on Fox Footy.
A photo of the 2015 School Sport Victoria 12 and Under team shows Daniels along with almost a dozen future AFL players like Sam Darcy, Finn Callaghan, Massimo D’Ambrosio, Josh Ward, Ben Hobbs and Anthony Caminiti.
Victoria's School Sport Under-12 team in 2015, with Sam Darcy and Dyson Daniels circled.
Victoria's School Sport Under-12 team in 2015, with Sam Darcy and Dyson Daniels circled.Source: FOX SPORTS
At the time Darcy was “a tall, agile midfielder who excelled when given time on the ball,” according to an article by AFL Media’s Riley Beveridge.
Asked who was taller on the time, Daniels joked: “it was probably still him, but it would’ve been a lot closer than now”.
“Nowadays it’s versatile. We got six foot nine point guards. But, I mean, he could play centre, point guard, whatever - we might be able to stretch the floor. So he might be, you know, a (new teammate Kristaps) Porzingis-type player.”
Daniels is a 201cm (6’7”) guard in the NBA while Darcy at 208cm (6’10”) plays forward while pinch-hitting in the ruck.
Dyson Daniels while growing up.
Dyson Daniels while growing up.Source: Supplied
The 22-year-old explained last year on AFL 360: “I had a pretty good junior career… I didn’t want to give footy up. I loved footy so much, I always say, if my basketball career doesn’t work out, if I still have a little in me in the end I want to come back and play some footy.
“I was definitely a mobile big, I liked to play in the ruck or ruck rover. I could go forward and kick a couple of goals every now and then.
“I was a lot skinnier; I didn’t have that football body, I was more an ‘in the air’ type of player. I couldn’t kick, couldn’t hit a target, just got it forward, as long as the ball was moving forward that’s all that mattered.”
Daniels is a Richmond supporter and was seen attending their game against Adelaide at the MCG last weekend.