Jordan Walsh is quietly starting to fulfill his Jaden McDaniels prophecy

Heading into the season, unless you were a Boston Celtics fan or simply a hardcore NBA fan, you might not have known the name Jordan Walsh. Truth be told, the 2023 second-round pick didn't play much in his first two seasons, receiving under 500 total minutes on a loaded Celtics team. However, with Jayson Tatum's injury and the Celtics making a lot of cap-cutting moves, Walsh got an opportunity.

Walsh has taken advantage of this opportunity, averaging 17.2 minutes, 4.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, an assist, and 1.6 stocks on 46.2/41.2/75 shooting splits. Notably, he has started in the past two games.

Now you might be asking how in the world this relates to Jaden McDaniels and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Over the summer, Walsh said that McDaniels is one of the players around the league that he watches film on. The shades of McDaniels, especially on defense, are clear.

Walsh resembles a young McDaniels

Walsh's offensive impact is limited and is still far away from even a young McDaniels on this end of the court. Nevertheless, he plays a similar role as a spot-up shooter, cutter, and athletic finisher. Defensively, though, is where the similarities are obvious.

Remarkably, Walsh is holding his opponents to 42.9 percent shooting and 33.3 percent during the past four games. He does so while guarding some of the league's best players and a wide range of positions. In the Celtics' recent games, Walsh has guarded Tyrese Maxey, James Harden, Jaren Jackson Jr., Franz Wagner, and Paolo Banchero. Walsh's performance against Maxey was the most impressive as he held the star guard to 1-9 shooting.

The Arkansas product is posting an absurd -10.2 on-off defensive swing. Undoubtedly, Walsh's on-ball defense and versatility are similar to McDaniels' defensive skill set. While Walsh is 6-foot-7, not 6-foot-9, he has the size and length to guard multiple positions but is typically used as a perimeter stopper like McDaniels.

Defensive playmaking is yet another similarity between Walsh and McDaniels. Notably, per Databallr, Walsh ranks in the 96th percentile for blocks per 100 possessions and the 85th percentile for steals per 100 possessions. Likewise, McDaniels is averaging 2.2 stocks per game. This, paired with their on-ball defense, makes both Walsh and McDaniels well-rounded defenders.

Walsh is still far away from the level of player that McDaniels is, especially given his career season this year. However, Walsh is starting to show off his potential as a defensive-minded wing. Ultimately, Walsh might never reach the level of player that McDaniels is, but he's starting to look like a young McDaniels.