Hawks' Dyson Daniels swipes Most Improved Player award

Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels, who posted the NBA's highest steals average in 34 seasons, was named the league's 2024-25 Most Improved Player on Wednesday and rewarded with the George Mikan Trophy.

The 22-year-old Australia native received 44 of a possible 100 first-place votes and was listed on 84 ballots by the global media panel while totaling 332 points. Los Angeles Clippers big man Ivica Zubac finished a distant second (186 points) while Detroit Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham took third (122).

Daniels, a key part of the offseason trade with the New Orleans Pelicans that brought four players and two first-round draft picks to the Hawks in exchange for Dejounte Murray, blossomed in his first year as a starter.

The 6-foot-8, 200-pound guard averaged 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.0 steals in 33.8 minutes per game over 76 regular-season games -- a marked improvement over his 5.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals in 22.3 minutes per game for the Pelicans in 2023-24.

Daniels also became the fifth player in NBA history to average at least 14 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals for a full season, joining Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Michael Ray Richardson and Alvin Robertson.

No NBA player had averaged three steals since Robertson posted 3.0 per game for the Milwaukee Bucks in 1990-91. Daniels, who also blocked 0.7 shots per game, finished second to Cleveland's Evan Mobley in the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year balloting.

The 28-year-old Zubac averaged 16.8 points and 12.6 rebounds in his fifth season as the Clippers' starting center -- a healthy jump from last season's 11.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.

Cunningham, the first overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, earned his first All-Star Game nod for averaging 26.1 points, 9.1 assists and 6.1 rebounds per game while leading the Pistons to their first playoff berth since 2019. The 23-year-old point guard produced 22.7 points, 7.5 assists and 6.3 rebounds per game the season before.