13 January 2016

Will Josh Davis Be Back?

Josh Davis
The only time that the Meralco Bolts reached the Final Four happened last year during the 2015 Commissioner's Cup when they had Josh Davis as an import.

Unfortunately for the Bolts, the hardworking import missed Game Three of their best-of-five series with Rain or Shine Elastopainters due to a dislocated left shoulder, which hastened the Bolt's title ambition.

After getting an early boot in the All-Filipino Conference, Bolts coach Norman Black said that they are planning to bring in a tall import and maximize the opportunity given to low-seeded teams. The Bolts has an option to tap a 6-foot-9 import, together with Mahindra Enforcers, Blackwater Elite and Star Hotshots, while the rest will make do with a 6-foot-5 import.

And guess what? Davis was measured last year as 6-foot-9 and averages 21.4 points, 16.6 rebounds and league-leading 2.5 steals per game.

Davis was also on the radar of former Hotshot coach Tim Cone last year, but they did now want to pay the hefty buy-out fee required by the National Basketball Association (NBA) D-League.

"Josh was my favorite player in the D-League. He’s like Rosell Ellis times two with bigger height so I really like Josh," added Cone, referring to his former import with Alaska Rosell Ellis, who was named the 2009 Best Import and led the Aces to a championship in the Fiesta Conference that same year.

Davis was the last cut in the San Antonio Spurs roster in the previous NBA season with the San Diego State University (SDSU) stalwart likened by scouts to his lookalike and play-alike Kawhi Leonard.

Coming out of the SDSU campus, Davis was nicknamed "Kawhi 2.0" for his rebounding skills and his profound likeness to the 2014 NBA Finals MVP.

Davis averaged 10.1 rebounds and 7.7 points in one year at SDSU after earlier stints with North Carolina State then with Tulane. Not much, but if taken into consideration on what he can do in the PBA, he may be able to double those outputs if he can just remain focused.

After his senior year at San Diego State, he joined Charlotte in the NBA Summer League where he put in 8.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. He finished three of seven games with double-double numbers.

He was tapped by Meralco primarily because of his great ability to get the rebounds.

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