Deyonta Davis leaves for the NBA
First Valentine, now Davis?!
Yesterday, Spartan forward Deyonta Davis declared he will enter the NBA draft. The freshman averaged 7.5 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game and had 64 blocked-shots in his first season. He set the school record for most blocked-shots as a freshman. People were whispering about him potentially leaving, but I think most Spartan fans were in denial about it.
Deyonta comes from Muskegon High School where he was named Mr. Basketball, Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year, and earned the McDonalds All America award his senior year before arriving at MSU. Fans were excited about having the 6’10” freshman, and they were hoping to have him around for more than one year.
The forward wasn’t all talk and no play though. He came in clutch in a bunch of big games for the green and white. Especially during the Big 10 Championship game versus Purdue with his perfectly timed block in the final minute of the game to come back and win the tournament.
Tom Izzo and co. were already coping with the fact that this team is losing Denzel Valentine, Matt Costello and Bryn Forbes (all seniors). Plus, just yesterday, no. 1 uncommitted prospect Josh Jackson chose Kansas over Michigan State when finally coming to his decision. Now the Naismith Hall of Famer will need to deal with the loss of Davis as well.
Davis is the first one-and-done from Michigan State since 2001 with Zach Randolph. Spartan fans will be miss watching his seemingly effortless yet exciting play, but on June 23rd (date of the NBA draft) they will wish him all the best at the next level.