Anthony Davis: What's his ceiling?

So with the NCAA hoops season in the books, I saw about five or six Kentucky games. I have heard Anthony Davis described as a "franchise-changing" player.

My first reaction to statements like that has been skepticism. The games I've seen, the player he reminds me of most is Marcus Camby (and not because of the Calipari connection), who was a solid pro, but not really a franchise changer. I could see Davis getting a litter bigger and maybe becoming a Dwight Howard.

But with the way the game is played today, I'm not sure any big man is really a "franchise-changing" player anymore. I think Tim Duncan might be the last of those.

But again, I've only seen a few Kentucky games this season. So I'm curious everyone else's take on what his ceiling might be. All-Star? Perennial All-Star? Top 10 player? Hall of Famer? Bust? What say you, SportsJournalists.com?

 

Tayshaun Prince 2.0? A 15/10 guy with better shot-block numbers?

Which would rank as disappointing, I guess, given the expectations larded onto a No. 1 pick, but would be a very solid career.

 

Davis' game is not like Prince's at all. Prince was a wing player and Davis will play the 4 on most teams, and maybe the 5 if he ever bulks up a lot.

I think he'll be in the 18/12/3 range in his prime.

 

If he gets stronger, Tim Duncan sounds about right.

Davis also handles the ball very well for a big man and has a very nice shot facing the basket to go along with a nice jump hook. If he gets stronger, he will be a very hard player to match up with in the pros.

 

I am a complete idiot, but I would rather draft Kidd-Gilchrist

 

I think that, even though it won't happen, he really would benefit from a year to work on his offensive game.

He has no back to the basket moves -- how many times did he spin baseline from the left and have no shot?

He's a great rebounder with strong hands and a top notch shot blocker.

I think his upside is a better Marcus Camby.

 

Great defensive player, but seems to me he'll be offensively challenged in the NBA. Does seem to have decent range for a big man--that could help him.

Was thinking about this earlier this morning and the first name that popped to mind was Dikembe Mutumbo. Porbably not a fair comparison, but if I had to wager, I'd put Davis closer to Mutumbo than to Duncan or Howard.

To me, hardly seems like an automatic #1 overall pick. But, I never thought Duncan would amount to much, so I've been wrong before and am prepared should I be so again here.

 

I think one of the things that stuck me on the Marcus Camby comparison is that last night, for instance, Withey kept gaining position on the block with what looked like relative ease. Made it look like Davis is a better weak-side, help defender than he is as a primary defender in the post. Maybe someone who's seen more of him can judge better.

 

Davis is WAAY better as a freshman than Camby was. He needs better hands on offense and more upper-body strength, but he's still growing. Remember, he had an adolescent growth spurt of cosmic dimensions. His body is still catching up with itself.
But on defense, he's a pro already. When he's on D, he reminds me of what I thought when I first saw Kevin Garnett, that here is a teenager with a game of a 30-year old. His basketball instincts are toppermost of the poppermost.

 

How much better might he be in the NBA if he played four years in college?

 

That's a fair point, Gee, I'm definitely comparing a 19-year-old Davis with the Camby I saw at UMass in 1996 and later with the Knicks in my mind's eye.

I do, however, remember being much more impressed with Garnett than Davis when he burst onto the scene.

 

Well, would he better off as a 4th year pro or an incoming rookie?