The Atlanta Hawks are enjoying a meaningful uptick on the defensive end this season. In fact, Quin Snyder's team has its best ranking in defensive efficiency since the 2016-17 season, even while in a retooling mode from a roster standpoint. Perhaps the most significant individual factor in that improvement is the arrival of Dyson Daniels, who is on track for an All-Defensive Team selection in 2024-25. Daniels is producing defensive havoc at a level not seen in the league for quite some time, which begs the question of how the 21-year-old stacks up historically when it comes to steals.
Barring an explosion unlike anything in the history of the league over the final 17 games of Atlanta's season, Daniels is unlikely to challenge the all-time NBA record of 3.67 steals per game, set by Alvin Robertson in 1985-86. At present, Daniels is averaging 3.00 steals per game, with 180 total steals in 60 appearances. For context, no one has averaged three steals per game since Robertson did it in 1990-91, and that alone speaks to the historic nature of what Daniels is doing.
Dyson Daniels might not break the steals record but he could steal make history
Among all active players, Chris Paul has the most total steals in any season, producing 217 swipes in 2007-08 as a member of the Hornets. Daniels is only 37 steals shy of that mark with 17 games to play and, with anything approaching his production from the first 60 contests, he is on track to break that mark. From there, Daniels also has a good chance to set a new baseline for the 21st century.
Allen Iverson (225) has the most total steals in a season by any player since 2000. If Daniels were to appear in all 17 of Atlanta's remaining games, he would need to average 2.7 per game to eclipse Iverson and, obviously, that is well within reach for a player averaging 3.0 per game over 60 outings.
In recent years, the production of steals is actually down quite a bit in NBA circles. For example, no player averaged more than 2.09 steals per game over the five previous seasons. Daniels is soaring past that part, and Daniels already has more total steals (180) this season than any player has generated over a full season since Ricky Rubio in 2013-14. No player has reached even 200 in a season since 2008-09, and Daniels is on pace to cruise past that number with relative ease.
When referring back to the 2024-25 season alone, Daniels is simply lapping the field. Kris Dunn is currently No. 2 in the NBA in averaging approximately 1.8 steals per game. In contrast, Daniels is averaging more than 60 percent more steals per game than Dunn, which is a gap that is virtually unprecedented in NBA history.
Daniels is exceptionally valuable to the Hawks on both ends of the floor, leading Atlanta to deploy him for 34.0 minutes per game. That is a lofty number, at least by modern NBA standards, but his rate stats are just as impressive as his totals and per-game averages. Daniels is averaging 3.18 steals per 36 minutes. That would be the most by anyone since Robertson in 1990-91. He is also averaging 4.11 steals per 100 possessions, and that is the most by anyone since Tony Allen in 2010-11.
In addition to the production of steals, Daniels is well-respected as an on-ball defender, taking on the lead assignment for Atlanta. He also creates havoc even on plays in which Daniels does not receive credit for the steal.
NBA.com's database has been publicly tracking individual deflections since the 2016-17 season. Daniels already has 47 more deflections (362) than any other player has in a full season over that span of time, which illustrates his dominance in getting his hands on the basketball. Furthermore, Daniels is averaging 6.0 deflections per game this season. No qualified player has averaged more than 4.2 per game since the tracking began in 2016-17.
Overall, Daniels is operating at an historic level when it comes to steals. He won't be setting NBA records, simply due to the way the game has changed, but it would be a surprise at this point if he did not have the most productive season in that department in more than 25 years.