Dyson Daniels, aka the Great Barrier Thief, is enjoying a breakout year with the Atlanta Hawks. As a full-time starter for the first time in his three-year career, Daniels is averaging 13.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists while leading the league in steals (3.0) and deflections (6.3) in 33.8 minutes per game.
Daniels has also, notably, avoided the injury bug. Aside from missing two games early in the season with a strained right hip flexor, Daniels has always been available in Atlanta. This was not the case during his first two years with the New Orleans Pelicans, who have dealt with seemingly endless, often untimely injuries in recent seasons. Daniels has noticed that the Pelicans have started 2024-25 with a 5-21 record, thanks to injuries to literally all of their core players, and he told The Stein Line's Jake Fischer that he A) believes the franchise is cursed, and B) is glad to have escaped.
"That organization's cursed," Daniels told me Wednesday. "Every year there's something new. I'm happy I'm not there anymore."
His grin was wry. "Because of the curse?" I asked.
"Yeah," Daniels said. "The curse, man. I had like four or five ankle injuries down there as well. There's something down in that water down there or something. They got hamstrings. They got knees. They got concussions and stuff as well. They get everything down there. I don't know what it is. Playing hard I guess?"
There you have it: The Pelicans aren't just unlucky. They are doomed, cosmically.
In all seriousness, Daniels seems to have an evenhanded view of his time in New Orleans. He said that he has been "fueled" by how his first two years went, as "I wasn't happy with how I played," but he doesn't hold the franchise -- or any supernatural forces -- responsible for it.
"I don't point fingers at anyone," Daniels said. "I blame myself. I wasn't consistent. My first two years I was up and down. I had great games and I had really bad games. I didn't find that consistency and we had a lot of players in New Orleans."
Daniels and the Hawks visited his former team back on Nov. 3, and the Pelicans visited Atlanta on Dec. 2. If they are indeed cursed, Daniels can rest easy: He won't be anywhere near them for the rest of the season.
