Davis juggling being new father and first NBA camp originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
WASHINGTON — You wouldn’t know it by Johnny Davis’ calm and soft-spoken demeanor, but the 20-year-old is currently going through an experience few have ever experienced before.
He’s in his first NBA training camp as a rookie. He’s also adjusting to life as a parent, as his first child was born in September.
Those situations on their own are not unique, but together? At the same time?
Now, that cannot be easy.
“Just taking it one day at a time, one diaper at a time,” Davis said.
The Wizards are monitoring the situation and providing whatever help they can to make the transition(s) easier for Davis. Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. hopes practices and games can be a “safe haven” for Davis where he can just focus on basketball for hours at a time.
At a minimum, it may be something for fans to keep in mind when he struggles on the court, as he has through two preseason games where he’s shot 0-for-12 from the field.
“I know it’s a lot. I was a first-time father at 37, so to be a young man and have to go through that, it’s exciting but it’s also daunting and overwhelming at times,” Unseld Jr. said.
Davis said the experience of being a first-time father has helped him mature and essentially grow up quickly. He will need to do the same on the court, as the Wizards may need him more than initially expected thanks to an ankle injury for second-year wing Corey Kispert.
Kispert is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks, meaning he could be out for the first month of the regular season. Davis, the 10th overall pick in June, appears to be a logical replacement as the backup 2-guard. Unseld Jr. mentioned his name when asked for who could see more opportunity with Kispert out.
Davis will first have to shake off some right knee tendonitis, which kept him out of Thursday’s practice. In an unfortunate coincidence, all three of the Wizards’ most recent first-round picks are hurt. Davis (2022) has the knee issue, Kispert (2021) has the ankle and Deni Avdija (2020) is nursing a groin injury.
The Wizards believe Davis’ injury is minor and his sitting out Thursday was described by Unseld Jr. as merely a precaution. So, if that is true and he can get back on the court quickly, the door should be open for him to earn some early season minutes.
“That’s why the team has guys like me on the bench, to be able to step up. It’s just that next-man-up mentality,” Davis said.
Davis has been getting a crash course in Wizards practices by guarding Bradley Beal. They play the same position, so they are matched up often and that pits Davis, who has yet to play an NBA game that counts, against one of the best scorers in the world.
If Davis comes to work after a night of little sleep as a new father, he has a daunting challenge awaiting him.
“I’ve seen it on TV and seen it in video games, but being able to stand in front of him and guard him 1-on-1 in real life is crazy. But I’ve gotta treat him like he’s any other basketball player. I can’t treat him like he’s a god or something,” Davis said.
It’s rarely easy for a rookie to transition into the NBA against the best players in the world. But it’s also not often players have it as difficult as Davis currently does.
If he makes it through this, he can make it through anything.
