Chicago — Wisconsin sophomore shooting guard Jonathan Davis is a simple kid playing a simple game.
A very good defender. A solid scorer. Waste of diving into the floor. A deadly shot from the midrange. Nothing is too flashy.
So Davis didn’t deviate when the team asked quirky questions about his personal life during an interview with the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago.
“They asked me what my” wild “moment was,” Davis said. “I’m aware that I’m in the NBA, and I’m going to play against the people who were there. I just tried to do a straight head interview.”
20-year-old Davis staged Pro Day on Saturday, but did not shoot or drill as part of the stability of agent Jeff Schwartz’s Excel management. KnicksI interviewed him on Thursday, but he attended. Davis is within Knicks and is ranked 11th overall in the draft, but there are interviews with previous teams, including the 9th Spurs.
Davis said he was honored to meet Tom Thibodeau, a former Bulls coach who couldn’t walk the streets of Chicago without stopping.
“It really worked,” Davis said. “I’m glad I saw my familiar face [in Thibodeau] And someone who has been part of the game for some time. It was great to talk to him after seeing what he was doing with many teams. He is a very famous coach in the league.
“I heard from someone who likes him [me],” Davis added. “So hopefully I can harmonize with them and they will invest in me enough to draft me.”
Davis, whose father is former NBA player Mark Davis, also met the Spurs. But he didn’t see Serbian coach Gregg Popovich scouting for the EuroLeague Final Four.
Spurs can be the biggest threat to Davis falling to Knicks, but in some simulated drafts Davis may go to Pelican No. 8 as a perfect backup for CJ McCollum.
“Obviously, playing under Popovich, the most famous coach in NBA history, is what I really want to do,” Davis said.
The defense is a calling card, but Davis feels he can also be an explosive NBA scorer and is trying to emulate Devin Booker on the attacking side. For now, he is a great midrange scorer who needs to improve his range.
“Yes, Devin Booker. I don’t know him personally,” Davis said. “His strength and ability to score in different ways. I don’t know much about him as a defender, but he is competing.”
When Davis played a small role in a senior-dominated team, averaging 7 points per game in 2020-21, no one considered Davis a potential lottery candidate as a freshman.
However, as a sophomore in this past season, his efficiency stats have fallen as he is a “Mr. badger” — a man of interest and his defenses have paid attention to him. Davis averaged 19.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists. But he shot 42.7 percent overall — from a range of 3 points to 30.3.
“It definitely doesn’t represent me,” Davis said. “I should have been able to shoot better from the free throw line, especially from 3. I thought I had more competing shots in the second half of the season. In the second half of the season, I was successful at the beginning of the season, so the team Locked me more. “
Davis, who helped Wisconsin gain a share of Big Ten’s regular season titles, has an intangible spirit that cannot be captured by analysis.
“For Johnny, everything starts with his competitiveness, his killer instinct, and his will to win,” Wisconsin coach Greg Guard recently said. “That’s at the top of his motivational factors. But he also spent a full offseason in the waitroom outside a few weeks with Team USA. [Under-19 roster].. It helped him add strength and explosiveness. “
Davis is a twin, and his twin brother Jordan played with him in Wisconsin. Formerly a small forward, his father played professionally for 13 seasons after being drafted by the Cavalier in the 1985 NBA Draft.
“”[He told me] Just have fun. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself or think too high, “Davis said. “Stay at that moment.”
When asked what he was thinking when his name was called on the night of the draft in Brooklyn on June 23, Davis said: They could put me in this position. They raised me to me today. Everything I do is for them. “
