Deyonta Davis, how good is he?

 Right off the bat you can see that he can be a great defensive player. Given his frame and how raw he is right now, I can see Larry Sanders in him. He didn’t show much offense at Michigan St. We don’t really know how his offensive game is because he wasn’t really ask much.

 Right off the bat you can see that he can be a great defensive player. Given his frame and how raw he is right now, I can see Larry Sanders in him. He didn’t show much offense at Michigan St. We don’t really know how his offensive game is because he wasn’t really ask much.

 Deyonta Davis has said to media that he can shoot the three but couldn’t showcase it in his college basketball system

 Deyonta Davis has said to media that he can shoot the three but couldn’t showcase it in his college basketball system

Davis is a perfect canvass of a prospect showing the potential to have very few weaknesses when fully developed as a F/C in the modern NBA with great potential to be effective in important areas of the game defensively that is critical to teams success in the NBA. He understands his role as a guy that gets limited touches and shoots high percentage shots on offense but is really a guy who gets extra possessions for his team by getting offensive rebounds and defensive turnovers/stops, and makes it difficult for the opponent to play an easy game.

This is the exact same role played by all 4 Conference Championship starter C’s in this years Playoffs Thompson, Biyambo, Bogut, and Adams and all of those players have been unsung heroes for their teams all year long. The difference is while Davis shows the same potential defensively, rebounding and off the ball setting screens and playing positional basketball he shows signs that he won’t have the same shortcomings as the players we usually see fill these roles. It really depends on what team selects him because he is raw and does need the developing. If he goes to Sacramento I probably won’t be expecting him to develop into much too soon, but if the Spurs grab him he could be a star/all defensive type player in 3-4 years.

19 years old until December, 6’10.5, 237, 7’2.5 wingspan and a 10% body fat. This provides a lot of flexibility. First of all you want to get the 10% to about 6% and replace that 10 pounds of fat with muscle. Then you can bulk him up and have him play at 260 to play mostly C or keep him light at 240-235 for PF. Should we focus on developing his perimeter game or his post moves. Who is he playing next to and complimenting and how are we developing them.

I think his floor would be a guy like Amir Johnson. Offensively I would try to develop him into an AL Horford type player. Defensively I would try to develop him into a Hassan Whiteside type player. His ceiling is likely Derrick Favors.

Davis is a perfect canvass of a prospect showing the potential to have very few weaknesses when fully developed as a F/C in the modern NBA with great potential to be effective in important areas of the game defensively that is critical to teams success in the NBA. He understands his role as a guy that gets limited touches and shoots high percentage shots on offense but is really a guy who gets extra possessions for his team by getting offensive rebounds and defensive turnovers/stops, and makes it difficult for the opponent to play an easy game.

This is the exact same role played by all 4 Conference Championship starter C’s in this years Playoffs Thompson, Biyambo, Bogut, and Adams and all of those players have been unsung heroes for their teams all year long. The difference is while Davis shows the same potential defensively, rebounding and off the ball setting screens and playing positional basketball he shows signs that he won’t have the same shortcomings as the players we usually see fill these roles. It really depends on what team selects him because he is raw and does need the developing. If he goes to Sacramento I probably won’t be expecting him to develop into much too soon, but if the Spurs grab him he could be a star/all defensive type player in 3-4 years.

19 years old until December, 6’10.5, 237, 7’2.5 wingspan and a 10% body fat. This provides a lot of flexibility. First of all you want to get the 10% to about 6% and replace that 10 pounds of fat with muscle. Then you can bulk him up and have him play at 260 to play mostly C or keep him light at 240-235 for PF. Should we focus on developing his perimeter game or his post moves. Who is he playing next to and complimenting and how are we developing them.

I think his floor would be a guy like Amir Johnson. Offensively I would try to develop him into an AL Horford type player. Defensively I would try to develop him into a Hassan Whiteside type player. His ceiling is likely Derrick Favors.

 I think what position he plays is the most important thing for his value. As a PF he has okay value, but he’d make an extremely valuable center… if he can pull it off. I know we are in a small ball era, but that means he might only play center a small portion of time. If I knew for sure he was a center, I’d have him up way higher. I just don’t think he can protect the rim. And that okay, but if he’s a PF, I don’t see him as s lottery guy. 

 I think what position he plays is the most important thing for his value. As a PF he has okay value, but he’d make an extremely valuable center… if he can pull it off. I know we are in a small ball era, but that means he might only play center a small portion of time. If I knew for sure he was a center, I’d have him up way higher. I just don’t think he can protect the rim. And that okay, but if he’s a PF, I don’t see him as s lottery guy. 

 Guy is one of the youngest in the draft so we’d have to consider he has a lot of upside, he is a bulky guy but with that sort of size can add some extra muscle and will be able to hold his own in the paint. His defensive game will improve hugely with experience and he has the ability to be a good rim protector.

His shooting range is something he is looking to work on, he can be fed easy baskets at the moment but with time should be able to develop a mid range game. Whilst his main value will be on defence, a few offensive moves are always useful. 

He runs the floor well but can be foul prone and his offensive moves are somewhat predictable but these issues can be looked at in the NBA with the right coaching and mentoring.

We don’t expect a player like this to be a Dirk/Pau Gasol type offensive player but if he develops a few decent offensive moves and knows his role in a team then he can be a good NBA player. I always say no-one expects bigs to be great passers or creative players but there is no reason why he couldn’t be a reasonable ball handler, do the things expected of him and give his team mates the confidence to give him the ball knowing he won’t do anything stupid with it.

As regards the draft I don’t see him as a likely top 10 pick although I’d guess teams like Toronto at 9 would work him out as they are in the market for a possible PF and Biyombo might move in FA. I think guys like Deyonta, Ellenson, Skal, Zimmerman, Jones and Diallo are all very much in the mix for teams looking for a young big in the 11-25 range.

I could see a team like Chicago having a good look at Deyonta at 14 and that would seem a decent fit for him with someone like Taj Gibson to mentor him. Memphis at 17 would be another decent location for him with Marc Gasol and Z-Bo to help him along.

 Guy is one of the youngest in the draft so we’d have to consider he has a lot of upside, he is a bulky guy but with that sort of size can add some extra muscle and will be able to hold his own in the paint. His defensive game will improve hugely with experience and he has the ability to be a good rim protector.

His shooting range is something he is looking to work on, he can be fed easy baskets at the moment but with time should be able to develop a mid range game. Whilst his main value will be on defence, a few offensive moves are always useful. 

He runs the floor well but can be foul prone and his offensive moves are somewhat predictable but these issues can be looked at in the NBA with the right coaching and mentoring.

We don’t expect a player like this to be a Dirk/Pau Gasol type offensive player but if he develops a few decent offensive moves and knows his role in a team then he can be a good NBA player. I always say no-one expects bigs to be great passers or creative players but there is no reason why he couldn’t be a reasonable ball handler, do the things expected of him and give his team mates the confidence to give him the ball knowing he won’t do anything stupid with it.

As regards the draft I don’t see him as a likely top 10 pick although I’d guess teams like Toronto at 9 would work him out as they are in the market for a possible PF and Biyombo might move in FA. I think guys like Deyonta, Ellenson, Skal, Zimmerman, Jones and Diallo are all very much in the mix for teams looking for a young big in the 11-25 range.

I could see a team like Chicago having a good look at Deyonta at 14 and that would seem a decent fit for him with someone like Taj Gibson to mentor him. Memphis at 17 would be another decent location for him with Marc Gasol and Z-Bo to help him along.

I like his upside and work ethic, worth a top 10 pick, i seeing him become a jermaine o’neal type and level player in the future…

I like his upside and work ethic, worth a top 10 pick, i seeing him become a jermaine o’neal type and level player in the future…

I see everyone saying his calling card is going to be defense. Is Davis actually a great defender though? 

He’s big, and he looks the part of a good defensive big…but he’s got a long way to go on that end of the floor. He’s not great defending in space…which is what the "modern-day big" has to do more than ever. He’s prone to getting lost on rotations, which is another huge no-no for back-line defenders. 

He blocked shots and he’s got the ideal athleticism where you can project him out to being a good defensive big, but there’s an awful lot of projection and imagination in his case and it makes taking him in the top half of the lottery quite the adventure. 

He didn’t show much in college. Is that because he didn’t have to or because he wasnt ready to? Probably a bit of both. But if he’s drafted super high, he’s not going to have the benefit of playing alongside superior talent in comparison to his competition. 

I think an ideal role for Davis initially would be a 4th big…get him 12-18 minutes per game off the bench where he can learn and grow in low-leverage situations. 

He’s super young and has the physical profile that can be useful in the league, but there’s just so much unknown with him. 

I see everyone saying his calling card is going to be defense. Is Davis actually a great defender though? 

He’s big, and he looks the part of a good defensive big…but he’s got a long way to go on that end of the floor. He’s not great defending in space…which is what the "modern-day big" has to do more than ever. He’s prone to getting lost on rotations, which is another huge no-no for back-line defenders. 

He blocked shots and he’s got the ideal athleticism where you can project him out to being a good defensive big, but there’s an awful lot of projection and imagination in his case and it makes taking him in the top half of the lottery quite the adventure. 

He didn’t show much in college. Is that because he didn’t have to or because he wasnt ready to? Probably a bit of both. But if he’s drafted super high, he’s not going to have the benefit of playing alongside superior talent in comparison to his competition. 

I think an ideal role for Davis initially would be a 4th big…get him 12-18 minutes per game off the bench where he can learn and grow in low-leverage situations. 

He’s super young and has the physical profile that can be useful in the league, but there’s just so much unknown with him. 

Davis will be a stud. Obviously, everyone knows his D will translate the best to the pros. But did you guys see his jump shot? Man, it’s a thing of beauty. He kinda has CHanning Frye’s shooting form, which I really think indicates he will develop into a very good mid-range shooting big in the pros. Watch out for this guy.

Davis will be a stud. Obviously, everyone knows his D will translate the best to the pros. But did you guys see his jump shot? Man, it’s a thing of beauty. He kinda has CHanning Frye’s shooting form, which I really think indicates he will develop into a very good mid-range shooting big in the pros. Watch out for this guy.