Jamal on Jaden: 'NBA Game Might Suit Him Better'

Jaden McDaniels showed up at Washington with a huge basketball reputation, but he lacked the maturity to match it. Physically or otherwise.

Just 19, the freshman forward got shoved around, had trouble getting off his shot and became frustrated. He did dumb things, like impishly tapping the back of a Hawaii player's head -- to draw one of his six technical fouls.

He sprained an ankle. Lost his starting job. Drew a barrage of fan criticism.

Last weekend, everything changed for McDaniels. He traveled to the desert for spiritual renewal and he took over the floor at Arizona State and Arizona. He became the player everyone thought he would be.

Rather than force the action, the 6-foot-9 McDaniels let the game come to him. He worked clever give-and-go's with teammates. He rippled the nets with his high-release 3-pointer. He threw the ball down emphatically.

The Jaden McDaniels transformation apparently wasn't totally complete -- Arizona fans griped that he unleashed an F-bomb for everyone to hear at McKale Center -- but he didn't get whistled for it.

Witnesses are telling me Jaden McDaniels launched an F-bomb into the stands across from the Washington bench on his last 3.
— Bruce Pascoe (@BrucePascoe) March 8, 2020

McDaniels has made great strides as a player and turned his 12th-seeded Huskies (15-16 overall, 5-13 Pac-12) into the underdog team most to fear entering the Pac-12 tournament, which opens Wednesday in Las Vegas.

If anything, the teenager further legitimized his NBA prospects, going from a projected lottery pick early on to the second 10 of the first round once he struggled to likely back.

McDaniels, who averages 13.1 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, is fully expected to bid the Huskies farewell and enter the pro draft whenever his college season ends. That's a given.

"It's up to Jaden," said Jamal Williams, former UW standout and McDaniels' ex-Seattle Rotary AAU coach. "He's had a rough year and things haven't gone the way I think he wanted them to. But I think he's ready."

The reasoning, as heard in the video clip: The pro game could be much more conducive to McDaniels' free-wheeling style of play.

"The NBA game might suit his game a little bit more, just to be able to move and use his skill and versatility without having people in the paint," Williams said.

If anyone disagrees with that, they might consider viewing this McDaniels' highlights clip from the Arizona game, provided by the Pac-12, which on Monday named him freshman Player of the Week.

While he could use another 20-30 pounds on his tall, willowy frame, McDaniels certainly has the graceful offensive moves and even the shot-blocking defensive ability that the next level requires.

People continually compare him to Kevin Durant, who turned pro after a solitary collegiate season at Texas. For those who have somehow forgotten -- both the NBA team and the moment -- Durant joined the Seattle Sonics 12 years ago. Three teams later, it's worked out well for him.

Jamal Williams, who played a decade of pro basketball overseas but diligently wears a coach's hat now, wasn't necessarily advocating that McDaniels rush off to the NBA, just reaffirming the kid's skill set.

"If he wanted to stay and work on his craft, I wouldn't mind that at all," he said.