As expected, former Memphis guard Kendric Davis went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft.
There was some hope that Davis could’ve been selected in the night’s waning moments, though. He told as such to Parth Upadhyaya of the Daily Memphian early Thursday evening prior to the draft.
“They tell me I can be anywhere from 45 to undrafted to a two-way.” Davis said.
Here's KD's full quote:
"They tell me I can be anywhere from 45 to undrafted to a two-way. They know me, though — teams understand me. They like, 'We know you don't care if you get drafted.' … Everybody says, 'We know that we can count on you to grind and get better.'" https://t.co/x5prrR4Tt8
However, the 6-foot guard still went undrafted despite having a productive collegiate career and pre-draft process. Davis started his time in college at TCU before spending three years at SMU and one with Memphis.
The Houston, Texas native won the AAC Player of the Year award in 2022, his final year at SMU. He averaged 19.4 points, 4.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game during that campaign.
Davis improved upon those numbers during his final collegiate season at Memphis. He averaged 21.9 points, 5.4 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game in 2023. He didn’t win AAC Player of the Year, however, losing it to Houston’s Marcus Sasser in controversial fashion. Sasser was selected 25th overall in Thursday’s draft by the Grizzlies before being traded to the Pistons via the Celtics.
Davis and Memphis ultimately got the last laugh over Sasser and Houston, however. The Tigers beat the Cougars in the AAC Tournament Championship game. This was Memphis’ first conference tournament title since 2013.
And though Memphis later lost to Florida Atlantic in his only NCAA Tournament game, Davis had still proven himself worthy of the NBA-level by the end of his college career.
Pre-Draft Process
Davis continued to stand out throughout the pre-draft process. He first impressed scouts at the NBA G-League Camp, which earned him an invite to the NBA Draft Combine.
At the combine, Davis shined that much more with his anthropometry testing, his strength and agility testing and his performances in various scrimmages.
Click here, here, here and here to learn more about Davis’ time in the pre-draft process.
In the 2023 NBA Draft Combine 5v5 scrimmages, Memphis G Kendric Davis (@150__KD) proved why he should be on EVERY NBA team’s radar 👀🔥
Lethal off ball screens, great shot creator, passes well, shows HEART
He also participated in multiple workouts with NBA teams, including the Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers. The latter featured Davis in a pre-draft interview.
What’s Next for Davis?
Davis will play for the Golden State Warriors in the 2023 NBA Summer League, joining fellow Tiger alumni Lester Quinones.
If he plays well enough there, he’ll likely earn a spot in the NBA G-League this upcoming season.
Senior Editor for Tiger Blueprint. See more of my work on Bluff City Media, where I’m the Memphis basketball beat writer, the Men in Hoodies podcast on Apple and Spotify and on “Sports with Roman Cleary” live on University of Memphis Radio—The ROAR Fridays from 3-4 p.m. during the fall and spring.
