Jaden McDaniels has long been known as one of the league's best perimeter defenders. Frankly, it feels strange that he only has one All-Defensive team honor to his name, but that's beside the point. However, after shutting down Jamal Murray in the first-round of the playoffs, McDaniels' case for the league's best perimeter defender began to grow.
Notably, McDaniels held Murray to 31.9 percent shooting as the primary defender. In every game, McDaniels picked Murray up full-court and gave him no space to operate, which was ultimately a big reason why the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Denver Nuggets in the first-round.
The San Antonio Spurs pose a different challenge for McDaniels with the three-headed guard trio of De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper. If Game 1 is any indication, McDaniels is poised for another stellar defensive series. McDaniels oscillated between Fox and Castle in Game 1, holding them to 37.5 percent shooting as the primary defender. All in all, opposing players are shooting just 38.8 percent from the field when guarded by McDaniels.
Should McDaniels continue playing this shutdown defense, conversations of him being the best perimeter defender in the league will persist. And not to get ahead of ourselves, but if the Wolves emerge from this series, McDaniels will likely match up with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the next round. If he can replicate any bit of his success against SGA, it would be hard to argue that he's not the league's best perimeter defender.
As such, the opportunity for McDaniels to solidify his case as the league's best perimeter defender is staring him right in the face.
Jaden McDaniels has a real case as the league's best perimeter defender
Fox and Castle are different types of guards from Murray. Specifically, Fox has lightning-quick speed, while Castle is an explosive athlete with a ton of size, whereas Murray is more of a methodical three-level. Being able to contain different styles of guards is a key reason why McDaniels has a legitimate claim as the league's best perimeter defender.
McDaniels is officially listed at 6-foot-9, but it's widely believed (including by his teammates) that he is closer to 6-foot-10. Regardless, McDaniels' blend of length, size, quickness, and tenacity is exceptionally rare. This makes him a matchup nightmare for every type of guard, and it allows him to legitimately take stars out of a series.
There are obviously plenty of great perimeter defenders. However, I'd have to say that OG Anunoby, Ausar Thompson, and Amen Thompson are McDaniels' biggest competition for the league's best perimeter stopper.
You can't go wrong with any of these names. I'd argue that Anunoby is better served to defend opposing forwards than guards, though. Amen had a shaky playoffs for his standards. Ausar is the closest case for me, but McDaniels being two inches taller makes him a tougher matchup in some ways.
This postseason has already felt like the playoffs of Jaden McDaniels and will certainly continue to be the case if his elite defense continues to limit star guards. Without a doubt, McDaniels' shutdown defense, paired with his ability to provide secondary creation, makes him an indispensable part of the Wolves' success.Â
Overall, if he keeps playing like this, it's easy to see a world where McDaniels is viewed as the consensus best perimeter defender in the league.
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