Ex-Kentucky Wildcat Anthony Davis will be a “Franchise-Changer” for New Orleans Hornets
By Danielle
“I compared Anthony to Kevin Durant and to Kevin Garnett because he can play the 3 position like Kevin Durant, but also be a Face-up 4 like Kevin Garnett,” Davis’ high school coach, Cortez Hale, said when asked who he would say is similar to Davis. “What people do not know is that Anthony has 3pt shooting ability and he can play out on the wing and take guards or big man off the dribble. He is going to show and surprise a lot of people of his wing skills that he has. It is going to be fun to watch him.”
The outside shot is something that Kentucky fans saw very little of in the past season but that’s because Davis was usually catching lobs at the rim or making that unguardable long jump shot. Davis made 3 shots from outside the arc out of 20 attempts.
“His outside shot during his freshman and sophomore years was good,” Hale said of Davis’ outside shooting. “He pretty much just stayed out on the 3pt line and shot the ball off kicks out. He really did not start slashing to the basket until the end of his sophomore year.
“During his junior year, when he grew from 6’3″ to 6’7″, his outside shot got better because he was able to see the rim better since he was taller but he started to play inside a lot more and use his length and height a lot more.
“During his senior year, his shot improved a lot more, he got this kink out of his shot and it made a huge difference. He made 6 threes in one game and made 4 of them in row at one point during game. I’ve also seen him, at the end of one practice during his senior year, make 10 threes with his backpack on from the wing, he could not miss. That was amazing seeing him do that because he had the extra weight on his shoulders and back but was still knocking the shots down. He has a great touch and form for a guy who is 6’11.”
“He reminds me a little bit of Marcus Camby,” said ESPN senior writer Gene Wojciechowski, author of The Last Great Game, said via email. “But the upside on Davis is frightening. He’ll have to develop his inside scoring game, of course, but everything else: his defense, his attitude, his ability to run the floor, his unselfishness is NBA ready. In those things, he reminds me a bit of a young Tim Duncan (without the offensive game at this point).”
Boston Globe sports columnist Bob Ryan finds Kentucky Wildcat coach John Calipari’s comments from April as rather interesting and isn’t buying the argument that Davis would be a Small Forward in the NBA.
“Interested that Coach Cal says he’ll be a 3 or a 4 in the NBA,” Ryan said via email. “Can’t buy that. A 4, with an accompanying bully in the middle, OK. But wasting him as a 3? He needs to get stronger, no doubt, but he’s a 4/ 5 who should be a Duncan-esque player.”
“Anthony Davis is the No.1 player picked in the draft,” Louisville coach Rick Pitino said during the postgame news conference after Kentucky knocked the Cardinals out of the tournament. “When you’re playing against Bill Russell at the pro level, you realize why the Celtics won 11 World Championships. When you see this young man at the collegiate level, you realize why they’re so good.”
How will Davis impact the Hornets immediately? What does he need to do to get ready for the next level? Are they automatically going to be a playoff contender next season? It’s the question of the week amongst sportswriters and sportscasters nationally, and within the New Orleans media.