The NBA Finals are set to begin tonight, Thursday, June 5. And while the Atlanta Hawks will not be participating, preparing instead for the 2025 NBA Draft, they will have a representative in Dyson Daniels taking part in the series.
Daniels is one of at least 21 current or former players whom the NBA will use as correspondents during the series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers.
Daniels will assist with Game 3, which will be in Indiana.
The NBA’s senior vice president of entertainment and player marketing, Michael Levine, noted the experience offered players an opportunity to be on the “biggest stage” the league offers, “where they aspire to be.”
Additionally, LeVine, who spearheaded the initiative, laid out the four ways he sees the program helping players, starting with helping them “build their social profile.
“Two, we also want them to understand the business of the NBA, and specifically the NBA Entertainment side,” LeVine said per NBA.com’s Maurice Brooks on June 4. “Three, is relationship building. So getting to know the people, the league office, our broadcast partners, our global partners, will help all of us build this game. This knowledge then leads to a more trusting and cooperative relationship.
“Lastly, seeing the NBA Finals, this is where they hope to be.”
Dyson Daniels getting different kind of Finals experience
Daniels, whom the Hawks acquired in a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2024 offseason, has been to the playoffs once, with his former team, and has never been out of the first round.
Moreover, he only played three games in that series, which the Pelicans lost in a four-game sweep to none other than the Thunder in the 2023-24 Western Conference Playoffs.
Daniels averaged 1.3 points in a little under six minutes per game in the series.
He is coming off a breakout season with the Hawks, averaging career-highs with 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and a league-leading 3.0 steals per game. He also earned All-Defensive First Team honors and is the 2024-25 Most Improved Player.
With an All-Star nod standing as an obvious individual goal, the next step for Daniels is team success, which bodes well for the Hawks, given his drive to reach his current level.
How the Hawks tweak the roster this offseason is key.
That is not just for the pieces around Daniels, but for the Aussie himself as he is extension-eligible this offseason with restricted free agency looming in 2027.