Michigan signee Dug McDaniel is a Zavier Simpson type — & more
Recruiting experts had plenty of questions when former Michigan coach John Beilein ended his pursuit of Cassius Winston to take a commitment from Zavier Simpson. Beilein, known for recruiting shooters, took a chance on a small but confident point guard who had one quality in particular that he loved:
He just refused to lose.
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Fast forward several years. Juwan Howard, now entering his fourth season, had a number of point guards on his 2022 class radar. Some were bigger than Fairfax (Va.) Paul VI’s Dug McDaniel. Some were better shooters, and there were better defenders.
When it came winning time, though — that’s when McDaniel finally stood tall. His teams usually came out on top, and he was often the reason why. McDaniel (5-11, 167, On3.com consensus No. 66 player nationally) simply finds ways to win.
He led Paul VI to a Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championship — an incredibly tough league — in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year of sorts for the program. His drive and dish set up the winning lay-up with less than a second remaining.
Winners make winning plays, and McDaniel did it again.
“Yeah, he’s got ‘it,’” Michigan assistant Phil Martelli said. “And again, if people want to say it about his size … yeah, it’s to be seen. Coming off a ball screen at this level [is different]. What’s his base?
“But that’s why I was fascinated with the things he did on the football field. He didn’t just run away from people. He was physical, and he maneuvered. That’s the same thing.”
He shot 41 percent from long range, too, an area of his game many believed wasn’t good enough. He’s continued to improve.
“No question his shot has come a long way,” Martelli said. “But you’ve got to have that little ‘dog’ defensively, too. I think he can. In our gym, if you don’t have it, you’re not going to be on the floor very much.”
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Another Michigan guard who refuses to lose
More than anything, On3.com’s Jamie Shaw said, McDaniel is simply a winner.
“He’s a fascinating one,” he said. “He’s really small. That what you notice first. In that league, small point guards haven’t necessarily been a thing.
“But he’s been small his whole life and produced at a high level his whole life. AAU, Paul VI and that league they’re in. He has that ‘it’ factor to him, a little magical ability with the ball in his hands. He’s incredibly crafty, understanding angles and footwork and all that type of stuff, too. Everything about him checks the box that he won’t pan out and is not good enough, except for the production when he plays.”
He might be the best passer in the 2022 class, he added. Like Simpson, he loves to share the ball and sets his teammates up beautifully.
He’s also like the former Michigan standout in another way.
“What I think he’s very creative at — and these guys laugh because we write up a report when we see somebody — I went to see him and said, ‘you know what he is? He’s a very good lay-up shooter,” Martelli added. “I’m talking about creative layups. It’s a skill, like ‘X’. That’s a creative layup shooter.
“Steph Curry is a creative layup shooter. If he just goes in there [nonchalantly] at 6-2, stuff is going to get blocked.”
Add it all up and you get Simpson 2.0, but with a better jumper out of high school.
He’ll have to prove it on the court to be mentioned in the same breath as one of the Michigan program’s winningest players and the No. 2 all-time assist man. But he’s got a lot of the same intangibles, and he’ll arrive in Ann Arbor this June with a purpose.
Count on it.
