Victorian Dyson Daniels will be a part of the NBA All-Star weekend after changes to the Rising Stars event were announced today.
The one-off exhibition game, which in the past has seen the best rookies in the NBA face off against the best second-year NBA talent, will now feature four seven-player teams competing in a mini-tournament consisting of three games.
The 18-year-old Daniels has been selected as one of the four players from the NBA G League Ignite who will be a part of the pool of 28 players for the game. The remaining players will be a mixture of first-year players and second-year NBA players.
The four NBA G League Ignite players selected by NBA G League head coaches for 2022 @Clorox Rising Stars ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/5Kcjie92fx
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) February 2, 2022
The 24 rookies and sophomores were selected by assistant coaches and the 4 Ignite players were chosen by G League head coaches.
Daniels has been averaging 11.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists in the G-League competition this season and after his recent 21 point, 8 rebound effort against Grand Rapids Gold in December has seen his draft stock skyrocket due to his G-League play. USA Today recently published their 2022 mock draft, which saw the Philadelphia 76ers selecting Daniels with the 21st pick and positive analysis of his game.
Daniels emerged as one more intriguing international prospects in recent memory after spending time with the NBA Academy in Australia. He is viewed as one of the top players on the Ignite this season, an interesting development considering the team also has Michael Foster Jr. and Jaden Hardy.
He has excelled in just about every area of the game with the exception of his shooting; he is converting on just 25.5% from beyond the arc. Still, his ability to make plays for others, defend at a high level on the perimeter and make smart decisions should be enough for him to hear his name fairly early on draft night.
The teams will be coached by members of the NBA’s 75th-anniversary team. The coaches will select their rosters in a Rising Stars draft with each team consisting of seven players, including one from the Ignite. The series of games will also see former NBL talent Josh Giddey, LaMelo Ball and Jae’Sean Tate showcase their skills against the best young talent in the NBA and G-League.
The details of the coaches and draft will be announced at a later date.
The 2022 #CloroxRisingStars player pool!
? Friday, Feb 18 on TNT ? pic.twitter.com/6K67VBw9qe
— NBA (@NBA) February 2, 2022
Each game will be played to a final target score, meaning that a game will end with a made basket or a made free throw instead of a running clock.
The semifinal games will be played to a final target score of 50 with the final game being played to 25, for a total of 75 points across the semifinal and final to celebrate the league’s 75th anniversary.
TNT will televise the competition beginning at 9 p.m. EST.
First Year NBA Players
Cole Anthony (Orlando)
Jalen Green (Houston)
Scottie Barnes (Toronto)
Cade Cunningham (Detroit)
Ayo Dosunmu (Chicago)
Chris Duarte (Indiana)
Josh Giddey (Oklahoma City)
Herbert Jones (New Orleans)
Davion Mitchell (Sacramento)
Evan Mobley (Cleveland)
Alperen Sengun (Houston)
Jalen Suggs (Orlando)
Franz Wagner (Orlando)
Second Year NBA Players
Precious Achiuwa (Toronto)
LaMelo Ball (Charlotte)
Desmond Bane (Memphis)
Saddiq Bey (Detroit)
Anthony Edwards (Minnesota)
Tyrese Haliburton (Sacramento)
Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia
Jaden McDaniels (Minnesota)
Isaac Okoro (Cleveland)
Isaiah Stewart (Detroit)
Jae’Sean Tate (Houston)
The four G League Ignite players named to the roster include MarJon Beauchamp, Dyson Daniels, Jaden Hardy and Scoot Henderson.
Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.
