Deyonta Davis (born December 2, 1996) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He won the Mr. Basketball of Michigan in 2015 and appeared in the McDonald's All-American Boys Game the same year. He played one season of college basketball for the

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...

before being drafted by the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

with the 31st overall pick in the

2016 NBA draft The 2016 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2016, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN, and was live streamed for the first time in NBA draft history by The Vertical. National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

before being traded to the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

on draft night.

High school career

Davis attended

Muskegon High School Muskegon High School is a public high school located in Muskegon, Michigan, and was the first high school in Muskegon County, Michigan. History The Class of 1875, consisting of two girls, was the first from Muskegon High School. Records sho ...

Muskegon, Michigan Muskegon ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Muskegon County, Michigan, United States. Situated around a harbor of Lake Michigan, Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, and boating. It is the most populous city along Lake Michigan' ...

. In his final season, he recorded 4 points and 12 rebounds in the state regional finals, as Muskegon escaped Hudsonville in quadruple-overtime. He played his final game for the Big Reds on March 24, 2015, in a 52–75 quarterfinals loss to Everett High School. He contributed 12 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 blocks. It was played only three miles from the

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

campus. Davis said after the loss, "It was very important o help my team advance We came out ready to play, but the game just didn't go our way." The game was attended by MSU assistant basketball coach Dwayne Stephens, who helped recruit him to his team. Davis also got the chance to meet Spartans players before competing. As Muskegon's star left his team, head coach Keith Guy said, "The future is bright. Two games don't define his career." By the end of the season, Davis was named Mr. Basketball of Michigan for 2015. In the balloting, he earned a total of 5,223 points. Arthur Hill's Eric Davis and Everett's Trevor Manuel finished after him, getting 3,757 and 2,837 points respectively. The award was won by two straight players from Muskegon High School, Deshaun Thrower winning in 2014. Big Red coach Guy complemented his team, saying, "To have another kid win it for the second consecutive year, it shows how far our program has come the last three years." Davis was given his personal Mr. Basketball trophy between the quarters of the

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

state title game, in which

Saginaw Saginaw () is a city in Saginaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 44,202 at the 2020 census. Located along the Saginaw River, Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of ...

's Arthur Hill played against

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

's Western International. He said in disappointment, "I'd much rather be on the floor playing right now." On April 1, 2015, Davis competed in the

2015 McDonald's All-American Boys Game The 2015 McDonald's All-American Boys Game was an All-star basketball game that was played on April 1, 2015, at the United Center in Chicago, home of the Chicago Bulls. It was the 38th annual McDonald's All-American Game for high school boys. The ...

, playing for the West team. He played alongside the likes of

Brandon Ingram Brandon Xavier Ingram (born September 2, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the second overall pick in the 2016 N ...

, Allonzo Trier and Jalen Brunson and against future NBA All-Stars

Jaylen Brown Jaylen Marselles Brown (born October 24, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year of college basketball for the California Golden Bears and wa ...

and

Ben Simmons Benjamin David Simmons (born 20 July 1996) is an Australian professional basketball player who plays for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the LSU Tigers, a ...

, and other high school phenomenon's like Diamond Stone and Cheick Diallo. Davis finished the game with 6 points and 9 rebounds, leading his team in the latter category. In January, when he was named to the game, Bank Hoops scout Steve Bell said, "This is huge for West Michigan." The forward was the first player from that region to appear at the stage since Matt Steigenga in 1988.

College career

Davis played one season at

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

, averaging 7.5 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game, and 1.6 blocks per game. Davis started 16 of the final 17 games of the season for the

Spartans Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the valley of Evrotas river in Laconia, in southeastern P ...

. Davis was a key part to Michigan States record setting start to the season, Big Ten tournament championship, and MSU's 2nd overall final rank in the AP Poll. He set the school freshman record with 64 blocked shots, second-most in a single season in program history.

Professional career

Memphis Grizzlies (2016–2018)

Davis declared for the

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

on April 12, 2016. Davis and teammate Denzel Valentine were selected to attend the 2016 NBA Combine. Davis hired Bill Duffy as his agent. While Davis was consistently labelled as a lottery selection all the way until the day of the draft, he was chosen by the

with the 31st overall pick. He therefore became the first green room invitee to not hear his name get called in the first round since Maciej Lampe in 2003's NBA draft. Davis' rights were later traded to the

on draft night. On July 12, 2016, Davis signed a fully guaranteed three-year, $4-million contract with the

. The deal marked the richest guaranteed salary for an American-born second-round pick in NBA history. On December 15, 2016, he was ruled out for six to eight weeks with a torn plantar fascia in his left foot. During his rookie and sophomore seasons, Davis received multiple assignments to the

Iowa Energy Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and the Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies' G League affiliates.

Santa Cruz Warriors (2018–2019)

On July 17, 2018, Davis was traded, along with Ben McLemore, a 2021 second-round pick and cash considerations, to the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

in exchange for Garrett Temple. On September 22, 2018, Davis was waived by the Kings. On October 11, 2018, Davis signed with the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. The Warriors released him on October 12. He was then added to the Warriors’ G League affiliate, the

Santa Cruz Warriors The Santa Cruz Warriors are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Santa Cruz, California, and are affiliated with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors play their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Prior to ...

Atlanta Hawks (2019)

On March 19, 2019, Davis was called up to the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

and signed a 10-day contract. He signed a second 10-day contract on March 29. On April 8, 2019, following the expiration of his second 10-day contract with Atlanta, Davis signed a multi-year contract with the Hawks. On June 10, 2019, Davis was waived by the Hawks. He averaged four points and four rebounds in nine games. On the same day, Davis was claimed off free-agency waivers by the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

. On July 30, 2019, he was waived.

Return to Santa Cruz (2019–2020)

On October 29, 2019, Davis was included in the training camp roster of the

. On February 23, 2020, Davis posted 18 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks in a loss against the

Stockton Kings The Stockton Kings are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Stockton, California, and are affiliated with the Sacramento Kings. The Kings play their home games at the Adventist Health Arena and compete in the G ...

for his sixth straight double-double. He averaged 11.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in 2019–20.

Taoyuan Leopards (2021–2023)

On November 19, 2021, Davis signed with the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League. He was the league's blocks leader for the 2021–22 season. On June 30, 2022, Davis was selected to the all-defensive first team of the T1 League in 2021–22 season. Davis re-signed with the Taoyuan Leopards. He was the league's blocks leader for the 2022–23 season. On May 10, 2023, Davis was selected to the all-defensive first team of the T1 League in 2022–23 season.

Goyang Sono Skygunners (2023)

On July 17, 2023, Davis signed with the Taichung Suns of the T1 League. On October 5, Davis signed with the Goyang Sono Skygunners of the

Korean Basketball League The Korean Basketball League () or simply KBL is a professional men's basketball league in South Korea which was established in 1997. The league consists of ten teams and each team plays a total of 54 games (27 home and 27 away) in the regular s ...

. On December 26, Davis was replaced by DaJuan Summers.

Hsinchu Toplus Lioneers (2023–2024)

On December 26, 2023, Davis joined the Hsinchu Lioneers of the P. League+.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 36 , , 0 , , 6.6 , , .511 , , – , , .556 , , 1.7 , , 0.1 , , 0.1 , , 0.5 , , 1.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 62 , , 6 , , 15.2 , , .608 , , – , , .667 , , 4.0 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 0.6 , , 5.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, 9 , , 0 , , 13.1 , , .682 , , .000 , , .600 , , 4.0 , , 0.6 , , 0.3 , , 0.6 , , 4.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" , Career , 107 , , 6 , , 12.1 , , .599 , , .000 , , .635 , , 3.2 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 0.6 , , 4.2 , -

Playoffs

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2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 3 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .600 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.7 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 2.3 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" , Career , 3 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .600 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.7 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 2.3 , -

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 16 , , 18.6 , , .598 , , .000 , , .605 , , 5.5 , , .7 , , .3 , , 1.8 , , 7.5 , -

References

External links

Michigan State Spartans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Deyonta 1996 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in South Korea American expatriate basketball people in Taiwan American men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks players Basketball players from Michigan Boston Celtics draft picks Centers (basketball) Goyang Sono Skygunners players Hsinchu Toplus Lioneers players Iowa Energy players McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Grizzlies players Memphis Hustle players Michigan State Spartans men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) P. League+ imports Power forwards Santa Cruz Warriors players Sportspeople from Muskegon, Michigan T1 League imports Taoyuan Leopards players 21st-century American sportsmen