Is Kendric Davis the Top Point Guard in the NCAA!?

 

One of the most underrated point guard prospects in the world is SMU’s point guard Kendric Davis. Now, I do have some bias, being that Davis is a Houston native, but his stats show that he can obviously hoop. Statistically, The Point Guard is leading his team in points (21 points per game), assists (4.7 assists per game), steals (1.5 steals per game), 3 point percentage (40.2%), and free throw percentage (86.6%). He is basically the end all be all for SMU and the main reason they are currently sporting a 14-4 overall record and 5-1 conference record, which puts SMU at #2 in the American Athletic Conference standings (right behind my Houston Cougars :P). 

Unfortunately, I don't hear many draft analysts mentioning Davis, which is probably due to him not being one of the better teams in college basketball (even though his team is 14-4), he’s a senior (meaning he’s an older prospect), and the fact that he’s little. Kendric Davis is 5’11…maybe, and although height does matter in basketball, I believe he does have the skills to compensate for his lack of height. 

First of all, the dude is a floor general. Now, I’m old school. I like point guards who aren’t just scorers. I like guys who are the extension of their coach, but on the court. Davis obviously has the reins of SMU’s team, but it's nothing new. His sophomore season he averaged roughly 14 points per game and 7 assists per game and his junior year he put up 19 points per game and almost 8 assists. Those are NBA point guard stats. The dude has shown he can pass the ball and create for others. The only reason he isn’t averaging even more assists per game this season is because his team needs him to score, and he is doing so while shooting the best he’s ever shot behind the 3 point line. 

The fact that he is now averaging 21 points per game shows how balanced of a player he is. He can be the pass-first point guard that sets the table for others or the score-first point guard that shoulders the scoring load for the team. Either way, he’s shown that he's a proven leader on the court and will do whatever his team needs to be successful. Like I said before, he is currently shooting above 40% from behind the arc. Obviously he’ll have to work on increasing his range and accuracy to the NBA line, but improving his shooting is something that he has shown he is capable of doing. 

Maybe the most important part of his game I like in terms of NBA translation is his style of play. Kendric Davis is a very good ISO player. ISO meaning Isolation. Basically, when the play breaks down, he has the ability to pull something out of his ass by using his ball handling ability to get space from a defender, drive past a defender or get the attention of a help defender which gets a teammate open, and he’s shown the ability to make those passes as well. Teams can’t guard Davis one on one.

Defense is another aspect of the game that Davis excels in. He uses his quick feet and hands to stay in front of his opponents and get steals from them or in the passing lanes when playing off-ball defense. He also possesses a solid frame that allows him to take punishment on either side of the ball. 

All in all, Kendric Davis is one of the best point guards in the country. I don’t care that he is a 4-year player or 5’11. If you watch his games, he shows day in and day out that he dominates every game he plays in.