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Daniels could be surprise for Kings
The rookie free agent offers versatility, most prominently with his ballhandling skills.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Tuesday, October 26, 2004
At 6-foot-8, Erik Daniels looks surprisingly comfortable handling the ball. That becomes more understandable when you find out he played point guard in high school, where he grew from 5-10 as a freshman to 6-6 as a senior.
Then again, shouldn't a guy born April 1 be able to pull off a trick or two? Quite likely, the biggest eye-opener would be Daniels making the Kings' roster after joining the team as a rookie free agent.
He already has surprised some observers by hanging with the Kings this long. Whether he can survive the cutdown deadline at 3 p.m. next Monday remains to be seen, but Daniels knows the situation.
"It's a big thing for me to make it another day and have another chance to come out and make this team," said Daniels, 22, a former Kentucky standout who last season was named to the coaches' All-Southeastern Conference first team.
Daniels seemingly does nothing exceptionally well. The closest thing probably would be the ballhandling skills he said he has had since his prep career in Cincinnati. Daniels, however, can do a little bit of everything from multiple positions on the floor.
He played center most of his senior year at Kentucky. He's probably a natural small forward, and during most of training camp, he experienced what it's like to play against one of the world's best long-distance shooters, Peja Stojakovic.
Most recently, Daniels has received more playing time at power forward. Daniels, who is listed at 214 pounds, said he would have no problem going against players 35 to 40 pounds heavier.
"I have to use my quickness because the guys I'm guarding are bigger than me," Daniels said. "But I can use my quickness, and it's hard for them to guard me. I'm comfortable with the ball because I've been a point guard my whole life until I got to college."
Playing around the basket in college is coming in handy now, Daniels said.
"We didn't have a lot of big guys, so I played a lot of center," Daniels said. "I learned how to bang against the big guys inside, and that's good because you don't get a lot of chances to do that playing on the perimeter."
From the outside, he gets to chase the likes of Stojakovic.
"He's the best shooter I've ever seen," Daniels said. "All he needs is a little bit of room. He can handle the ball well enough to get his shot, and he uses all kinds of different shapes to get it off. I've had him behind the backboard, and it didn't mean anything.
"He's the toughest guy I've ever tried to play coming off a screen because you don't know what he's going to do. He'll pull up or drive, and he's 6-10, so you're not going to block his shot."
The Kings have noticed Daniels' versatility.
"He's a good basketball player," coach Rick Adelman said. "He knows how to play the game. He's a very good passer. He needs to improve his shooting, and he's had some problems defending out on the perimeter. I think he's been more effective playing (power forward). I know every time I've played him, he's done a good job."
Daniels also hopes to take advantage of his academic skills. He needs to complete about 30 more hours for his Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology. "I'm going back to get that," he said, "because I'm going to keep hearing my moms' mouth until I've got it."
Daniels could be surprise for Kings
The rookie free agent offers versatility, most prominently with his ballhandling skills.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Tuesday, October 26, 2004
At 6-foot-8, Erik Daniels looks surprisingly comfortable handling the ball. That becomes more understandable when you find out he played point guard in high school, where he grew from 5-10 as a freshman to 6-6 as a senior.
Then again, shouldn't a guy born April 1 be able to pull off a trick or two? Quite likely, the biggest eye-opener would be Daniels making the Kings' roster after joining the team as a rookie free agent.
He already has surprised some observers by hanging with the Kings this long. Whether he can survive the cutdown deadline at 3 p.m. next Monday remains to be seen, but Daniels knows the situation.
"It's a big thing for me to make it another day and have another chance to come out and make this team," said Daniels, 22, a former Kentucky standout who last season was named to the coaches' All-Southeastern Conference first team.
Daniels seemingly does nothing exceptionally well. The closest thing probably would be the ballhandling skills he said he has had since his prep career in Cincinnati. Daniels, however, can do a little bit of everything from multiple positions on the floor.
He played center most of his senior year at Kentucky. He's probably a natural small forward, and during most of training camp, he experienced what it's like to play against one of the world's best long-distance shooters, Peja Stojakovic.
Most recently, Daniels has received more playing time at power forward. Daniels, who is listed at 214 pounds, said he would have no problem going against players 35 to 40 pounds heavier.
"I have to use my quickness because the guys I'm guarding are bigger than me," Daniels said. "But I can use my quickness, and it's hard for them to guard me. I'm comfortable with the ball because I've been a point guard my whole life until I got to college."
Playing around the basket in college is coming in handy now, Daniels said.
"We didn't have a lot of big guys, so I played a lot of center," Daniels said. "I learned how to bang against the big guys inside, and that's good because you don't get a lot of chances to do that playing on the perimeter."
From the outside, he gets to chase the likes of Stojakovic.
"He's the best shooter I've ever seen," Daniels said. "All he needs is a little bit of room. He can handle the ball well enough to get his shot, and he uses all kinds of different shapes to get it off. I've had him behind the backboard, and it didn't mean anything.
"He's the toughest guy I've ever tried to play coming off a screen because you don't know what he's going to do. He'll pull up or drive, and he's 6-10, so you're not going to block his shot."
The Kings have noticed Daniels' versatility.
"He's a good basketball player," coach Rick Adelman said. "He knows how to play the game. He's a very good passer. He needs to improve his shooting, and he's had some problems defending out on the perimeter. I think he's been more effective playing (power forward). I know every time I've played him, he's done a good job."
Daniels also hopes to take advantage of his academic skills. He needs to complete about 30 more hours for his Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology. "I'm going back to get that," he said, "because I'm going to keep hearing my moms' mouth until I've got it."
