![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/poster-fallback.png\"\/)
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Australian guard Daniels scored 11 points on an efficient 5-8 shooting from the field, adding six rebounds, eight assists and swooping for two steals in an equal-team-high 38 minutes of action. <\/p>\n
But typically, it was his industrious work on the defensive end of the floor that drew plaudits from pundits. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to love how active Dyson Daniels has been in this first half. He\u2019s been active on both ends of the floor,\u201d former Hawks player and broadcast analyst Brian Oliver said in the second quarter. <\/p>\n
In particular, Daniels played the role of chief irritant for superstar New York guard Jalen Brunson, a two-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA Second Team member. <\/p>\n
After Brunson committed an eight-second backcourt violation, the Hawks broadcast suggested Daniels was having a significant impact on the All-Star. <\/p>\n
\u201cA little bit of frustration; I think Dyson Daniels has made it difficult for him with the level of physicality,\u201d Oliver said. <\/p>\n
Play-by-play caller Bob Rathbun added: \u201cHe may be getting in his head a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
NBA Wrap: Daniels delivers as Hawks win | 02:29<\/p>\n
Atlanta led New York by 13 points at half-time, as Daniels was on track for a triple-double with seven points, five rebounds and six assists. <\/p>\n
The \u2018Great Barrier Thief\u2019 also hadn\u2019t let Brunson \u2014 who has a knack for getting aggressive inside the key \u2014 get to the free-throw line while guarding him. <\/p>\n
Daniels picked up right where he left off to start the second half, making a trademark floater before getting loose for a breakaway dunk to take his points total to 11 for the night. <\/p>\n
\u201cRight now, he is doing a masterful job of running this ball club,\u201d Oliver said of the Aussie in the third quarter as the Hawks opened up a 20-point lead. <\/p>\n
The Bendigo native continually forced passes or tough shots from Brunson, staying in front of the diminutive guard with his shrewd defensive instincts and point-of-attack prowess. <\/p>\n
\u201cDaniels has had him (Brunson) in solitary confinement tonight,\u201d Rathbun said. <\/p>\n
Daniels exited for a well-deserved spell late in the third, and hilariously, Brunson converted an and-one at Kristaps Porzingis\u2019 expense just seconds after the Aussie had checked out. <\/p>\n
Brunson struggled mightily with Daniels as his primary defender, but thanks to screen actions and rotations, he worked his way to 24 points \u2014 though it came on an inefficient 10-24 shooting and a measly 1-10 clip from three-point range. <\/p>\n
The Knicks cut Atlanta\u2019s lead to just 13 early in the fourth as the home side made its anticipated run. <\/p>\n
In a crucial play, with New York within 11 points and three minutes remaining, Daniels secured a massive offensive rebound off a missed shot and dished to Jalen Johnson for the and-one dunk to put the visitors back up 14. <\/p>\n
Post-game, forward Nickeil Alexander-Walker spoke glowingly of Daniels\u2019 unafraid mindset. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s relentless, he keeps going,\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he\u2019s not afraid of a matchup, he\u2019s not afraid to, in this day and age, get embarrassed and have guys score and take it to heart. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think Dyson has a good amount of amnesia when it comes to that \u2014 like \u2018I don\u2019t know what happened\u2019. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept showing up, and he was tenacious on the ball, and he was what we needed.\u201d<\/p>\n
GIANNIS MAKES HISTORY IN DRAMATIC BUCKS WIN<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Giannis Antetokounmpo threw down the game-winning dunk with 4.7 seconds remaining to lift the Milwaukee Bucks to a 122-121 victory over the Charlotte Hornets and grab a slice of NBA history.<\/p>\n
The Bucks trailed by as many as 16 on their home floor, but Antetokounmpo scored 12 of his 30 points in the final quarter to help seal the win in a frantic finish that saw five lead changes in the final 45.7 seconds.<\/p>\n
The two-time NBA Most Valuable Player added 10 rebounds and five assists. It was his 158th regular-season game with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, overtaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson for the most in NBA history.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an incredible accomplishment,\u201d Antetokounmpo said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to come here and just do my job and go back home,\u201d he said. \u201cI just want to keep on evolving, keep on learning.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Bucks, whose erratic season included an eight-game injury absence for Antetokounmpo in December, improved to 15-20.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not there yet, but we\u2019re trending towards the right direction,\u201d Antetokounmpo said after Milwaukee\u2019s third win in four games.<\/p>\n
Giddey limps off with hamstring scare | 00:18<\/p>\n
IN OTHER GAMES AROUND THE LEAGUE…<\/p>\n
The NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder romped to an 131-94 victory over a Golden State Warriors team missing the star trio of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler.<\/p>\n
Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points and Chet Holmgren added 15 points, 15 rebounds and four blocked shots for OKC, who became the first team this season to reach 30 wins as they improved to 30-5.<\/p>\n
In Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points and Darius Garland added 18 as the Cavaliers edged the injury-depleted Denver Nuggets 113-108.<\/p>\n
Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic was among four sidelined Nuggets starters as he continues to recover from a hyperextended left knee.<\/p>\n
The Nuggets took a 97-88 lead into the fourth quarter and led 105-101 with 4:43 remaining before the Cavs reeled off 10 straight points in a spurt that included a go-ahead three-pointer from Garland.<\/p>\n
Cleveland outscored Denver 25-11 in the final period. Jamal Murray led the visitors with 34 points but had just six in the second half.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like the first three quarters, we just really weren\u2019t ourselves,\u201d Mitchell said after the Cavaliers\u2019 third straight win, adding that the key to keeping the victories coming was \u201cto be that team we were defensively — we know we can be and everything else takes care of itself.\u201d<\/p>\n
De\u2019Aaron Fox scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the short-handed San Antonio Spurs to a 123-113 victory over the reeling Indiana Pacers.<\/p>\n
San Antonio\u2019s French superstar Victor Wembanyama skipped the trip to Indianapolis after hyperextending his left knee in a win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said Wembanyama could return for Saturday\u2019s home game against the Portland Trail Blazers.<\/p>\n
Pascal Siakam scored 23 points for the Pacers, who trailed the entire second half on the way to an 11th straight defeat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dyson Daniels flashed on both ends of the floor and played a monumental role on a rival star…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":385493,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[355,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-385492","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-nba","9":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=385492"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385492\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/385493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=385492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=385492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=385492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}