Federal Way High School alum Jaden McDaniels, who just began his fourth season in the NBA, signed his first professional extension with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
McDaniels, 23, inked a five-year $156 million extension to stay in Minnesota.
Last year was a big season for the former University of Washington standout, who was the only player in the NBA with over 70 blocks and 70 steals on the season. Offensively it was a great year for McDaniels as well, scoring an average of 12.1 points a game and shooting 51.9% from the field and about 39.8% from three-point range.
He also earned the nickname “Seatbelt” because of his staunch defense against some of the league’s best. As a defender, McDaniels held opponents to a 44% shooting percentage, which was third in the league, via Spectrum Sports.
McDaniels wasn’t just playing good defense against anybody — he logged the third most matchups against NBA All-Stars in the league, holding them to 52.9% shooting at the rim, which was top 10 in the league.
As he wrapped up his final year at Federal Way High School in 2019, McDaniels became a top-10 national recruit, receiving offers from Kentucky, Texas, UCLA, and San Diego State, before signing with his hometown Huskies.
McDaniels was awarded the 2019 McDonald’s All-American, North Puget Sound League boys basketball MVP, and earned a spot on the Jordan Brand Classic 2019 national roster his senior year at Federal Way High School.
McDaniels played one season with the University of Washington where he averaged 13 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 blocks per game. He was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers as the 28th pick of the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft for the Minnesota Timberwolves, after the team made a deal earlier on draft day.
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