After being selected 46th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors, Dalano Banton went on to play the next four full seasons in the NBA. He was quite good in them, too. So it is something of a mystery as to why he is not now in it.
Standing 6’8 and with enviable versatility, Banton’s skillset as a point forward and/or defensive free-roamer was not merely an upside play. He played meaningful minutes for four seasons, across three different teams, and yet is not currently in the NBA, despite proving his abilities within it.
There are a lot of hard-to-pigeon-hole 6’8’ish forward types in the NBA roster shuffle. Purely from the top of the head, names in recent seasons include Jaylen Hoard, Vlatko Cancar and Juwan Morgan. Very few of them, though, have a positive VORP to show for 3,142 minutes of game action. Banton, with his +0.4 mark, does. And yet instead of being a rotation player, or even a deep bench option, he is instead on the outside, looking in.
Banton’s NBA Career To Date
Bantonâs NBA career features a cumulative average of 6.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists in only 14.5 minutes per game across 216 regular-season games with the Raptors, Boston Celtics and Portland Trail Blazers, with whom he most recently featured. His shot profile was never ideal, and his 40.2% career shooting percentage speaks to his limitations as a finisher from all areas – it is fair to say that that 40.2% would have improved had it not come on so many contested looks. Yet in being able to play decent defense across three positions and handle the ball on offence more than many other players of his size, Banton was able to parlay his low billing and limited shooting into solid work.
Instead of being on an NBA roster, though, Banton is instead somewhere where everyone can see him. He is in the G League playing with the Texas Legends, the affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks, with whom he had signed for training camp back in October. To date, Banton is averaging 24.1 points, 6.6 assists and 4.0 rebounds in 32.6 minutes per game – the scoring is ninth in the league (and second among all players not already on NBA contracts behind only Mac McClung), and the assists total is by far the highest of any non-conventional guard.
To wit, Banton averages 1.1 blocks and 1.o steals per game, which speaks to his defensive effort and utility. Without the greatest lateral quickness or strength, he was not able to stand out as a defender across his four NBA seasons, but he also did show himself to be perfectly decent and willing. He was a two-way player who just needed more consistent shooting from a shooting position. And while he still needs that, his season as a full-time G Leaguer has teased as to his potential should he manage it.
Perhaps He Should Study Shaun Livingston
In his wiry 6’8 frame, Banton plays like a ball-handling guard, while also having the match-up potential of playing both the three and (if a rebounding disadvantage is allowed) four spots as well. He stands out for his physical profile and backs it up with passing vision, defensive impact, transition play and the ability to get to the rim. Had he been a bit more judicious with his offensive aggression and stopped trying to prove he could score the ball like Rookie of the Year frontrunner Kon Knueppel, he may never have left the NBA at all.
If Banton can temper his shot selection, and find an area of the court he can call his own in the style of Shaun Livingston’s free throw line fall-aways during his Warriors days, perhaps Banton can find a similar role back in the big league somewhere. He could ultimately wind up going to China and becoming a handsomely-paid triple-double machine in the style of someone like Jamaal Franklin before him. But Banton’s is an NBA-standard talent level – and having already proven he can do it, a call-up is surely coming at some point soon.
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