The four-year pursuit that landed Dash Daniels

Dash Daniels’ strong rookie season with Melbourne United has been years in the making, beginning back in 2021 when he was a 14-year-old in Bendigo.

During that time, United chief executive Nick Truelson and part-owner Chris Moore drove down the Calder Freeway to build a relationship with the Daniels family, which included parents Ricky and Brikitta.

“Seeing the growth of the Next Stars program, it was like ‘we have a homegrown Victorian kid who could be a Next Star, we need to start that process right now’,” Truelson told CODE Sports.

"We wanted them to know that we didn’t want to just look at Dash as being a Next Star, we wanted to be the best pathway for him to not just develop him on court, but off court, and help him reach his dream of hopefully being a top-10 pick in the NBA Draft.”

This meeting started a chain of events for Daniels, who turns 18 on Thursday.

In the ensuing months, NBL officials Liam Santamaria and Vince Crivelli liaised with the Daniels family about the program and why it would be the best avenue to the rising star to achieve his dream, playing in the NBA.

‍Dash Daniels is a $94,600 guard in the NBL’s official fantasy game, Beat The Coach, presented by Choice Hotels. Take on Damon Lowery and Beat the Coach in any round of the NBL26 Season and you’ll receive an entry into the end-of-season $10,000 prize draw, including $5,000 cash and $5,000 in Choice Hotels™ gift vouchers. Sign up to play now here.

Ultimately, Daniels believed the proven pathway of United, who helped the likes of Ariel Hukporti, Luke Travers, Jack White and Matthew Dellavedova jump to the NBA, was best for him.

In an interview in CODE Sports, Daniels admitted he appreciated United's 'dedication, trust and loyalty', which is why he chose the six-time NBL champions over lucrative offers in the US, which his brother Dyson (now with the Atlanta Hawks) chose.

“When it came down to the decision ... they’ve been loyal and they’ve been talking to me for those three-to-four years,” Daniels said of Melbourne United.

Daniels' United side will look to end a four-game losing streak when they host Illawarra in a NBL25 Championship Series rematch on Thursday.

That Round 13 fixture at John Cain Arena tips off at 7.30pm AEDT, live on ESPN.

Read the full story here >> Inside the secret four-year quest that lured prodigy Dash Daniels to Melbourne United