This dude is quite possibly the best athlete in this year's draft. He puts on a show every time he grabs the ball. He has a nice midrange jumper, but isn’t really a perimeter player. He is a good rebounder for his size, and grabs plenty of steals. He has a tendency to play out of control, but he is a good defender when he’s focused. Davison isn’t a good 3 point shooter but he has the physical tools to make improvement. He is a good shot creator off the dribble and is a solid playmaker. I doubt he will produce much in his rookie season, but he can become a very good NBA player with time.

Comparison: Smaller Russell Westbrook

Projected Draft Range: 30-55

Height 6'3

Weight 195 lbs

Wingspan 6'5

DOB 10/03/02 (Draft Age: 19)

Pre-Draft Team Alabama Crimson Tide

Offense

• Shifty handles.

• Can over dribble.

• Tremendous playmaking ability and finishing.

• Great playmaking feel, super exciting abilities.

• Needs to find himself shooting higher FT%s and 3pt%s, eventually will. His shot mechanics look fine.

• Has bounce, really rises in the lane.

• Pushes in transition with major speed, burst, athleticism.

• Comfortable playing off-ball. C&S projectable. *

Defense

• Absolutely terrific rebounder for size.

• Has the physical tools to be a tenacious defender.

• Solid with closeouts.

Swing Factors

Role

• LOW:

• HIGH:

Ranking Scale:

Athleticism: 6/8

3pt shot: 4/10

Finishing: 7/10

Handle: 6/10

Playmaking: 4/8

Defensive Versatility: 3/10

Defensive Positioning: 3/8

Rebounding: 3/6

NBA Fit: 6/10

Total Score: 42/80

Player analysis

JD Davidson might have made one of the biggest mistakes of this year's draft process, in his first year at Alabama he was a contributor who had upside but also many big flaws in his game. Davidson was considered to possibly go back to school for his sophomore year but instead decided to stay in the draft and has since slipped considerably as his holes in his game continued to be picked at. JD is a great athlete who can get to the rim with ease, he is certainly a high flier with his bounce and speed being his best traits. The unfortunate set back for JD is the fact that he is a small guard who stands at round 6’1 which makes makes him one of the tiniest players in the draft, although smaller guards have thrived over the past few years in the league a lot of that comes from skill that Davidson doesn’t really poses. His testing numbers were a little weak at the combine but honestly the film from the past season shows that he is an athlete at least when it comes to on the court action. Davidson was a mediocre shooter that just has a poor base in his form, I like his touch and release so there is definitely room for improvement and the shot is certainly not broken but shooting is definitely his swing skill. Playing next to three starting caliber guards in college kept his ball handling and playmaking off of the table which is something I would like to see explored, if playing on the ball can be a talent for him then he could go from an undersized slasher to a creator which would give me a much more positive outlook on him even if the jumpshot doesn’t come around.

Projection

Draft range: [ 42 - undrafted ]

Comp: [ Dennis Smith Jr. ]

Strengths: Athleticism and Playmaking Weaknesses: Scoring and Size

High Side Comp: Tyrese Maxey Low Side Comp: Jumbo Tyler Ulis

Ideal Fit: Athletic Pass First PG

Draft Range: 24-58

Result: 53- BOS

Athleticism: 8/10 Size: 2/5 Defense: 5/10 Strength: 2/5 Quickness: 8/10 Creation: 4/5 Jumpshot: 4/10 Finishing: 3/5 NBA Ready: 2/5 Ball Handling: 7/10 Passing: 7/10 Intangibles: 4/5 Potential: 8/10 TOTAL: 64= Mid First

Strengths:

• Has some amazing athletic gifts, is incredibly explosive and can accelerate in a split second

• Can jump out the gym to throw down some insane dunks

• Loves to get his teammates involved and plays unselfish

• Is super fun to watch

• Is pretty young (2002) with a lot of potential

• A very good rebounding guard

• Speed helps him stay in front of his man very well

• Picks players pockets pretty well

Flaws:

• Is incredibly raw

• Doesn't seem to be the greatest shooter just yet

• Often panics and throws away some wild passes

• Is very streaky

• Will need some time in the G league cannot contribute straight away

One of the higher upside swings of the late rounds, but also a weird upside swing? Like Alabama, Davison has been all over the map this year. And like Alabama, Davison could wildly outperform his ranking on any given night.

Davison was a highly sought after prospect, but he wasn't one of those travelling basketball academy guys, which means a lot of people figured the learning curve for him in college would be pretty high. It was too a degree. Davison follows high level passing reads with frustrating turnovers when he was just moving too fast for himself. He knocked down some big shots this season but overall he's still got a long way to go. He's got the profile of a the guards that dominated draft boards for the last decade, but in this age when shooting and being a smart decision maker are more important than ever and even explosive guards like Ja can do both at a high level, there's still a lot for Davison to develop.

Davison's one of the first freshman I'd really encourage to stay in school. While next year's class is supposedly better, there will definitely still be room for a high performing sophomore to sneak into the lottery and Davison should have the opportunity to and physical tools to be a more productive sophomore who scouts can still project upside in.