Jalen McDaniels wasn’t far away from being Mr. Irrelevant. The Charlotte Hornets scooped him up with the 52nd overall pick of the 2019 NBA Draft. It’s not a place where you find much NBA talent. The Hornets found some tough. McDaniels was an instant contributor as a rookie and has steadily improved each year since then.
McDaniels enters year four looking to cement himself as part of the team’s future and earn some money. He’s in a contract year, and to this point he’s pretty well established as at least a role player. He plays good defense, gets a lot of steals and blocks, makes heady plays on offense, and shoots the three ball well.