
While Daniels was able to extend his streak of games with at least one steal to 23 games, that wasn't the best aspect of Daniels' performance, like it has been for most of the season. Even with Trae Young playing, Daniels stepped up as a playmaker and set a new career-high for assists. He has been able to provide more assists since Jalen Johnson (shoulder) was ruled out for the season, and this performance displayed his playmaking upside. He may not provide this many assists often, but Daniels should be a solid source of assists for the rest of this season.
Daniels continues to flourish, finishing Wednesday's defeat one blocked shot shy of a complete stat line. Over the past two weeks, he's offered 2nd-round value in 8-cat formats, one better than his season-long production. Daniels has been one of the most valuable players in fantasy basketball, as he exceeds his Yahoo ADP (137) by a significant margin. The Hawks end Week 15 with a Friday/Saturday back-to-back against the Bucks and Wizards.
Daniels contributed 19 points (6-10 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 6-10 FT), seven assists, six rebounds, four steals and three blocks in 36 minutes during Monday's 132-130 win over the Pistons.
Hunter will start a game for the first time since October 25. While he's flourished in a reserve role this season, the season-ending shoulder injury suffered by Jalen Johnson makes this lineup change necessary. Larry Nance Jr., David Roddy, Mouhamed Gueye, and Dominick Barlow have all received chances to start since Johnson's injury, but none provided tangible value at the power forward position. That should change with Hunter in the lineup.
The Hawks have now lost eight straight games, but one of the positives from Saturday was Daniels' night shooting the basketball. The 23 points are the most he's scored in a game since January 18 (23 vs. Boston), and he did so shooting over 50% from the field. With the Hawks being as banged up as they currently are, Daniels will have more room to show what he can do as an offensive weapon. Fantasy managers will benefit if he can make the most of those opportunities.