Grizzlies' Deyonta Davis working on consistency
Grizzlies second-year center Deyonta Davis made one of the NBA’s more productive rookies look inept twice in less than a minute.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma charged into the lane confidently attempting a layup Monday evening in FedExForum. Davis stood his ground near the rim and emphatically rejected Kuzma with powerful blocked shots that had the home crowd roaring.
The fourth-quarter scene created a snapshot of Davis’ NBA skill as a rim protector to go with his ability to rebound and be a constant threat to catch lobs for dunks.
Davis finished with a career-high five blocked shots in the win over the Lakers and showed little emotion doing it.
“It’s just part of the game,” Davis said matter-of-factly. “I’m happy, but at the same time, I’m not the person to show it.”
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Davis knows what’s most important as he stands to receive significant playing time with the Grizzlies unlikely to make the playoffs. Memphis (14-28) hosts the New York Knicks on Wednesday night, and Davis backing up his last performance is paramount.
Consistency is what the Grizzlies coaching staff is looking for in Davis and the other younger players.
“You know (Davis) hasn’t played a ton of basketball. He played one year in college, and he played sparingly last year, if at all,” Grizzlies interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “When you make a jump from basically high school at 18-19 years old to playing against grown men every single day, you have to be taught a routine. The routine starts when you wake up in the morning and it carries you through the day.
“When you look at the great players and I guarantee you if you call them on a game day at the same time every single day, they’d almost be in the exact same space every single day. He’s working on building those habits of understanding the foods you need to eat, what time you need to eat and the sleep you need to get. He’s learning that process right now, and we’re helping him with that. As he continues to grow, you’ll see more and more of consistency through him.”
Davis routinely plays three-on-three with veteran center Marc Gasol and big man Brandan Wright. They are in Davis’ ear as well as teammates who are charged with delivering Davis the basketball.
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Guard Tyreke Evans loves throwing lob passes at the rim where Davis can throw down easy dunks.
“I told him in the huddle if you play like this every night, you’ll become a good player in the league,” Evans said. “He works hard in practice playing with Marc (Gasol). He’s young, but he’s getting better.”
But Davis will never escape Bickerstaff’s wrath. Davis has been benched after a few minutes in games for not chasing rebounds. Recently, Davis followed a three-game stretch when he averaged 11.3 points and six rebounds in 18.6 minutes by producing a total of eight points, four rebounds and two blocked shots in the next four games.
Bickerstaff demands that Davis always be the hardest working player on the floor.
“He drills it into me every practice, every game, every halftime,” Davis said. “He just tells me I’ve got to bring the effort. That’s what I’m trying to do to show what I can do to help the team.”