Dyson Daniels hits Pelicans with ‘cursed’ label

Dyson Daniels has many reasons to be thankful to be a member of the Atlanta Hawks. While the situation in Atlanta is clearly more favorable for him than it was with the New Orleans Pelicans, Daniels also believes he escaped the grasp of a “curse” existing within the organization.

“That organization’s cursed,” Daniels said, via Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer. “Every year there’s something new. I’m happy I’m not there anymore.

“I had like four or five ankle injuries down there as well. There’s something down in that water down there or something. They got hamstrings. They got knees. They got concussions and stuff as well. They get everything down there. I don’t know what it is. Playing hard I guess?”

Midway through December, Daniels’ 14-12 Hawks have a much better record than the 5-21 Pelicans. Curse or not, he is undeniably in a better situation in his age-21 season with New Orleans hampered by injuries once again.

Daniels spent the first two years of his career in New Orleans after being selected by the Pelicans as the No. 8 overall pick of the 2022 NBA Draft. Whether it be due to injuries or other concerns, he never appeared in more than 61 games with the team. However, he has appeared in 24 of the Hawks’ first 26 games of 2024-2025.

While Daniels’ “curse” claim is purely comical, the Pelicans are consistently dealing with injuries to their key players. Most notably, star forward Zion Williamson has never developed any sort of consistency in his availability. New Orleans has also dealt with injuries to CJ McCollum and Dejounte Murray — whom the Hawks traded away when they acquired Daniels — during their respective tenures.

Dyson Daniels’ third-year leap