<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">He slithers through the lane eel-like, dreadlocks flapping, finding seams that are invisible to naked eyes other than his own. Then he puts up a soft jumper or, more preferably given his creaky shooting touch, a layup. How does one describe Marquis Daniels' style of play? "He has a strange game," Jermaine O'Neal said. "He has a lot of game, but it's kind of strange how he does things." Strange indeed. But, lately at least, effective. Daniels, who missed seven games because of tendinitis in his left knee, returned Sunday in the Indiana Pacers' win over the Los Angeles Clippers. His impact was as essential as it was immediate. The box score showed he scored 14 points and grabbed five rebounds. It didn't show that he broke down the Clippers' defense for easy baskets and jumbled the action, forcing defensive switches that created opportunities for teammates. How he does it is a mystery, even to most of his teammates. He's not particularly quick by NBA standards, yet somehow manages to find his way to the basket nearly every time he tries. "I just try to find angles," Daniels said. "I try to take what the defense gives me. Don't settle. Just stay aggressive the whole time. "It's instinctive, and some of it I learned along the way. I'm always asking other guys around the league, 'What would you do in this situation, what would you do in that situation?' That helps a lot." It helps the Pacers, because Daniels is one of their few perimeter players who can break down a defense. Jamaal Tinsley can, but he doesn't finish as well as Daniels. Darrell Armstrong is quick enough, but his lack of height makes it difficult for him to get shots. Daniels does it consistently, and usually produces results. That will be more important as the season goes along, because the Pacers' poor field goal percentage -- they rank second-to-last in the NBA -- is inspiring more and more zone defenses. Daniels, a 26 percent 3-point shooter, can't beat them from the outside, but he can infiltrate. Six of his seven field goals in Sunday's game came on layups, most of them in heavy traffic. "I'm the one setting picks for him most of the time," Foster said. "He comes off so close to me when I set screens, and it's such a precise angle. A lot of guys curve around them. And he changes directions so quickly. He keeps the ball in his hand a long time without palming it and it's hard to tell which way he's going to go. He's just so sharp with his movements."</div> Source
