Welcome to Boston, JD Davison! – Appreciation Thread (Waived July 24, 2025)

[Smart2Nesmith43]

I'm still not sure what people don't like about this kid. We haven't even remotely seen enough of him in the NBA yet to really assess what he can and can't do. Meanwhile, there's nothing left for him to do in the G League. Time to bring him up after the G Leasgue season and keep him here from now on.

Turnovers, defense, shooting. Other than that Mrs. Lincoln...

Turnovers because he hogs the ball and is careless. Defense because he is 6-1 and not strong/quick by NBA standards. His scoring has improved, but he is still only a 33% 3pt shooter (and sub-30 for his career) whereas a guy his size needs to be around 40% like PP. Unfortunately those three things are high priority for getting minutes on a good team like the C's.

Worse yet, I'm not sure those aspects have improved in the last couple of years. This year is his lowest A/TO yet. And while he's only 22 I don't know that his ceiling is all that much higher.

Being a leading scorer is nice but it isn't such a flex -- usually high scorers are given a chance somewhere in the NBA so don't rack up G-league stats. We just don't have room/use for him.

He probably deserves to play in the NBA somewhere. Just not on a deep contending team. I'm pretty sure he's gone after this year.

I don't really get the size/strength/athleticism criticisms I see a lot (he measured reach/wingspan in the Christian Braun/Andrew Nembhard category at the combine) but I do have the same concern that it doesn't seem to translate into the defensive end performance from what I can see.

Regardless of how he measured, he looks a lot smaller than Braun and Nembhard. Still, it's not like he is 5'8. There are plenty of back up guards his size in the league. It's not a death knell for his NBA career.

The shooting has to be better but it's at least trending up, even if it's not going as fast as some would like. The percentage are also dragged down by the difficulty of the attempts, it's not like he can just afford to take wide open catch and shoot threes considering his usage.

The turnovers are a non issue. The only reason his raw totals are so high is because he has the ball in his hands all the time. Even in a "career low" year he has a 2.35 ast/to ratio (2.52 and 2.41 in his first two seasons so it looks fairly stable actually) which is perfectly fine. For reference, the average ast/to ratio in the NBA is 1.82 and just 1.53 in the G-League. It's exactly in line with guys like LeBron James (2.39), Donovan Mitchell (2.37), SGA (2.31) and Luka Doncic (2.29). Again, I'm not arguing he is that level of passer because the gap between doing something at the NBA level and the G-League level is gigantic but I really don't see how that's holding him back in any way.

The defense seems to be the most problematic part but he also hasn't been put in a context with the most structure with all his minutes coming in garbage time. Maybe he wouldn't look so lost if he played with guys that know the system instead of the revolving doors of deep bench teammates that just joined Boston.

The most likely outcome is that he never turns into an NBA rotation guy but he has shown enough in the G-League that it's far more likely it will happen for him than anybody picked in the back half of the second round this June. He has done more than enough to earn a real shot somewhere and if it's not with the Celtics (as it looks increasingly likely), I at least hope that Boston can recoup some kind of asset for a guy that I believe has shown more than a typical late second rounder.

[return2glory]

JD Davison is currently first in total points scored in the G-League by a gigantic margin (809 to 662 for AJ Lawson who is in second place), first in field goals scored (291 to 232 for TJ Warren in second place), second in assists and fourth in made free throws.

He is first in USG% (30.9%), second in AST% (40.3%) with a very decent TS% (62.1%).

I know people are down on him but he has quite clearly been the best offensive player in the G-League this season and he is still only 22.

I'm still not sure what people don't like about this kid. We haven't even remotely seen enough of him in the NBA yet to really assess what he can and can't do. Meanwhile, there's nothing left for him to do in the G League. Time to bring him up after the G Leasgue season and keep him here from now on.

I remember watching him in his only year in college. They had him going off the bench. He was pretty good bad then. When he would come in, he would make an immediate impact.

He has improved every year in Maine. I think he will be in the NBA soon. I'm not sure if it will be with Boston because we have Pritchard here and there is no playing him for him. Two small guards would be tough.

[165bows]

Turnovers, defense, shooting. Other than that Mrs. Lincoln...

Turnovers because he hogs the ball and is careless. Defense because he is 6-1 and not strong/quick by NBA standards. His scoring has improved, but he is still only a 33% 3pt shooter (and sub-30 for his career) whereas a guy his size needs to be around 40% like PP. Unfortunately those three things are high priority for getting minutes on a good team like the C's.

Worse yet, I'm not sure those aspects have improved in the last couple of years. This year is his lowest A/TO yet. And while he's only 22 I don't know that his ceiling is all that much higher.

Being a leading scorer is nice but it isn't such a flex -- usually high scorers are given a chance somewhere in the NBA so don't rack up G-league stats. We just don't have room/use for him.

He probably deserves to play in the NBA somewhere. Just not on a deep contending team. I'm pretty sure he's gone after this year.

I don't really get the size/strength/athleticism criticisms I see a lot (he measured reach/wingspan in the Christian Braun/Andrew Nembhard category at the combine) but I do have the same concern that it doesn't seem to translate into the defensive end performance from what I can see.

Regardless of how he measured, he looks a lot smaller than Braun and Nembhard. Still, it's not like he is 5'8. There are plenty of back up guards his size in the league. It's not a death knell for his NBA career.

The shooting has to be better but it's at least trending up, even if it's not going as fast as some would like. The percentage are also dragged down by the difficulty of the attempts, it's not like he can just afford to take wide open catch and shoot threes considering his usage.

The turnovers are a non issue. The only reason his raw totals are so high is because he has the ball in his hands all the time. Even in a "career low" year he has a 2.35 ast/to ratio (2.52 and 2.41 in his first two seasons so it looks fairly stable actually) which is perfectly fine. For reference, the average ast/to ratio in the NBA is 1.82 and just 1.53 in the G-League. It's exactly in line with guys like LeBron James (2.39), Donovan Mitchell (2.37), SGA (2.31) and Luka Doncic (2.29). Again, I'm not arguing he is that level of passer because the gap between doing something at the NBA level and the G-League level is gigantic but I really don't see how that's holding him back in any way.

The defense seems to be the most problematic part but he also hasn't been put in a context with the most structure with all his minutes coming in garbage time. Maybe he wouldn't look so lost if he played with guys that know the system instead of the revolving doors of deep bench teammates that just joined Boston.

The most likely outcome is that he never turns into an NBA rotation guy but he has shown enough in the G-League that it's far more likely it will happen for him than anybody picked in the back half of the second round this June. He has done more than enough to earn a real shot somewhere and if it's not with the Celtics (as it looks increasingly likely), I at least hope that Boston can recoup some kind of asset for a guy that I believe has shown more than a typical late second rounder.

Lot of good details here and the only thing I’d add is (from my modest but not zero viewing of Maine) that he seems a lot stronger of an off ball defender than on ball guy. Though not sure how helpful that is as a good.

Some of that may be scheme as the Celtics do have this tendency to sort of shadow guys as they attack the rim and can, as a group, seem to be sort of content to cling to a guys shoulder from behind as he drives.

[bucknersrevenge]

Yeah, I'm not buying the he's too small but Pritchard isn't. Yes I get that PP has an elite skill but I'd argue JD's skill is attacking off the bounce and making plays. Regardless, I'm not ready to pull the plug on him myself but if Brad is, have some mercy and do it this offseason.

[redslastlaugh]

We have 30 games left in the season, and we have 30 games left of JDD 2-way eligibility. After the season JD can’t come back on a 2-way. I wonder if the organization plans to give JD some run here before Brad makes a final decision on Davisons’s future with the Celtics.

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[ThePigeon]

Deer in a headlight in the NBA
Cut your losses short (pun intended)

[31to6]

Deer in a headlight in the NBA
Cut your losses short (pun intended)

Yeah, he’s developed into a great G league player but not (yet) an NBA player. I think if anything was going to happen here we would have at least seen glimpses by now — and I doubt they invest a real roster spot in him next season.

[165bows]

Deer in a headlight in the NBA
Cut your losses short (pun intended)

Yeah, he’s developed into a great G league player but not (yet) an NBA player. I think if anything was going to happen here we would have at least seen glimpses by now — and I doubt they invest a real roster spot in him next season.

I’m on team “give him a rookie second round contract” next year and see what we’ve got.

[brackdan70]

We have 11 guys signed for next year, and 2 draft picks, so really one spot assuming we carry 14.
If there is an offseason cost saving trade (Jrue?) it’s likely more than one player comes back.
I am not sure they will have a roster spot for JD, but if so I am on board with signing him to a minimum and seeing what happens.

[Parliament10]

Deer in a headlight in the NBA
Cut your losses short (pun intended)

Yeah, he’s developed into a great G league player but not (yet) an NBA player. I think if anything was going to happen here we would have at least seen glimpses by now — and I doubt they invest a real roster spot in him next season.

I’m on team “give him a rookie second round contract” next year and see what we’ve got.

I don't see it. I mean, he's had 3 years. And truth be told, he gets stellar numbers, in the G League.
But, that's cause he's been there so long. He hasn't forced an impression, like Hauser, Kornet & Queta did.

Even Peterson, Walsh and now Scheierman, all make a better argument. That's like 6 Players that are passing Davison.
He's like the Pace Car. He looks like he's ahead, but he's not really in the race.

[shackles10]

Yeah, he’s developed into a great G league player but not (yet) an NBA player. I think if anything was going to happen here we would have at least seen glimpses by now — and I doubt they invest a real roster spot in him next season.

I’m on team “give him a rookie second round contract” next year and see what we’ve got.

I don't see it. I mean, he's had 3 years. And truth be told, he gets stellar numbers, in the G League.
But, that's cause he's been there so long. He hasn't forced an impression, like Hauser, Kornet & Queta did.

Even Peterson, Walsh and now Scheierman, all make a better argument. That's like 6 Players that are passing Davison.
He's like the Pace Car. He looks like he's ahead, but he's not really in the race.

Love the pace car analogy no matter where you stand on JD.

[hugepatsfan]

At the end of the day, the bar is set REALLY high to make it in the NBA if you're short/defensive liability. And the bar is also set really high to make it in an on ball offensive role because teams usually run most players through their top 3-4 guys at most.

That's tough for JD as a small guard who's primary skill set i splaying on the ball. Certainly a talented basketball player but his physical profile and skill set just doesn't translate very well at all to a back end roster spot. To play like he does at his size, there really isn't room for you in the NBA as a 3rd unit guy. You need to be good enough as a legit night in and night out 2nd unit player to really stick at that size with that skill set/playing style. Lesser individual players fit better at that part of the roster if they have more size or fit better in a low usage offensive role.

[165bows]

I’m on team “give him a rookie second round contract” next year and see what we’ve got.

I don't see it. I mean, he's had 3 years. And truth be told, he gets stellar numbers, in the G League.
But, that's cause he's been there so long. He hasn't forced an impression, like Hauser, Kornet & Queta did.

Even Peterson, Walsh and now Scheierman, all make a better argument. That's like 6 Players that are passing Davison.
He's like the Pace Car. He looks like he's ahead, but he's not really in the race.

Love the pace car analogy no matter where you stand on JD.

He's younger or quite a bit younger than all those guys but Walsh, that's where it falls through for me.

[phincsfan]

A player of JD's "G-League" level , also allows a new coach to somewhat have a successful season. Fans at the end of the day want to see wins even on that level, so if JD can help them accomplish that then .

I'll also go out on a limb and say it allows a team like Boston, who isn't necessarily a favorable FA destination some bargaining (not money wise) when it comes to these two way contracts because undrafted players will see that the organization tries it's best to develop young players.

[165bows]

At the end of the day, the bar is set REALLY high to make it in the NBA if you're short/defensive liability. And the bar is also set really high to make it in an on ball offensive role because teams usually run most players through their top 3-4 guys at most.

That's tough for JD as a small guard who's primary skill set i splaying on the ball. Certainly a talented basketball player but his physical profile and skill set just doesn't translate very well at all to a back end roster spot. To play like he does at his size, there really isn't room for you in the NBA as a 3rd unit guy. You need to be good enough as a legit night in and night out 2nd unit player to really stick at that size with that skill set/playing style. Lesser individual players fit better at that part of the roster if they have more size or fit better in a low usage offensive role.

It usually works out pretty well to just take what Brad Stevens says at face value, which for JD has been that they like him and want to keep him. Personally I think the size thing is over rated, as I've posted before he measured reach/wingspans better than guys like Andrew Nembhard and Christian Braun, and visually is more athletic than either of those guys.

The shooting and defense developing otoh are the big questions imo.

[cloverleaf]

Still only Walsh is younger on the team. JD won't be 23 until October, and PGs tend to take longer than wings to get established in the NBA.

Patience.

[snowman]

Sign him to the 15th roster spot as a minimum contract for this season, and a team option for next. If nothing else that gives us the option of picking us his option and possibility trading him for a 2nd round pick.

[Shak_Celts]

Sign him to the 15th roster spot as a minimum contract for this season, and a team option for next. If nothing else that gives us the option of picking us his option and possibility trading him for a 2nd round pick.

I knew for sure he wasn’t getting that spot, though always wishing he will, when they talked about how they play Rico in the G. When they said he’s coming off the bench and they were playing him like they would with the big club, I immediately understood that they never did that for JD. JD’s style of play doesn’t for with the big club, so it’s really no use in signing him because that’s all he knows. If they saw him with the big club eventually, I think he would have been surrounded differently and forced to focus on other things. That’s why he hasn’t gotten minutes no matter who was hurt.

He may not be an NBA player, but I don’t see him never getting a game on the main team with the numbers he puts up if he were on any other team. All the guys in front of him have missed games and they really never even brought him up to bench warm.

Yeah, they have plans for Rico, JD is just a nice guy to run their G team.

[ThePigeon]

Sign him to the 15th roster spot as a minimum contract for this season, and a team option for next. If nothing else that gives us the option of picking us his option and possibility trading him for a 2nd round pick.

I knew for sure he wasn’t getting that spot, though always wishing he will, when they talked about how they play Rico in the G. When they said he’s coming off the bench and they were playing him like they would with the big club, I immediately understood that they never did that for JD. JD’s style of play doesn’t for with the big club, so it’s really no use in signing him because that’s all he knows. If they saw him with the big club eventually, I think he would have been surrounded differently and forced to focus on other things. That’s why he hasn’t gotten minutes no matter who was hurt.

He may not be an NBA player, but I don’t see him never getting a game on the main team with the numbers he puts up if he were on any other team. All the guys in front of him have missed games and they really never even brought him up to bench warm.

Yeah, they have plans for Rico, JD is just a nice guy to run their G team.

If this is the case, which I think you are right, JD is just a wasted 2-way
Get someone you can actually develop for the main squad

He is a good player, but not an NBA player

[31to6]

A player of JD's "G-League" level , also allows a new coach to somewhat have a successful season. Fans at the end of the day want to see wins even on that level, so if JD can help them accomplish that then .

I'll also go out on a limb and say it allows a team like Boston, who isn't necessarily a favorable FA destination some bargaining (not money wise) when it comes to these two way contracts because undrafted players will see that the organization tries it's best to develop young players.

This is the thing — and Shak hit on it too — that JD has done: helped Maine be good. There’s value in that! Other young guys can develop in a winning program, with a ball-dominant “star” (which is good prep for the NBA), and JD may never have a meaningful moment playing in a Boston Celtics uniform but he’s therefore contributed to the franchise in a way that represents fine value for a late second round pick. He just hasn’t translated to the NBA level for them. To make a random comparison though, if Dalano Banton can become an NBA player of some marginal sort, I think Davison can as well. (And I like both those players, not trying to insult either of them here)