At long last, the Celtics have signed two-way player JD Davison to a two-year deal, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on Saturday.
Davison, who was drafted 53rd overall by the Celtics in 2022, has spent the last three seasons primarily in the G League and now gets his first real NBA opportunity. He is fresh off his best season yet, having been named G League MVP after averaging 25.1 points, 7.4 assists, and 5.2 rebounds with the Maine Celtics this past season. He upped those numbers to an astonishing 34.7 points and 13.3 assists in the postseason.
From the beginning of the year, getting an NBA contract was Davison’s primary aspiration.
“Coming into Year 3, I’m just trying to build a different type of role going into this year,” Davison told CelticsBlog earlier this fall. “Try to get signed — basically, try to get a full contract.”
Now, he’s accomplished that goal — meaning that he’ll be eligible to suit up in the postseason, unlikely the Celtics’ previous two playoff runs. This past season, Davison has appeared in 15 NBA games, his most-ever as a Celtic. He got a season-high 17 minutes of run on Wednesday against the Magic with the Celtics resting their top six players, but struggled from the field, shooting 0-6.
But, Joe Mazzulla made clear he wasn’t putting too much weight into that single game, a 96-76 blowout loss.
“One game doesn’t do that, [it’s] a whole body of work over the course of games, practices, workouts, film sessions,” he said. “So, no, there’s not one thing they can do tonight that’ll impact what they’ve done over the season.”
On Friday night, Davison got on the board with a thunderous dunk, his last field goal as a two-way player in the NBA.
Afterwards, Derrick White said he wasn’t surprised about Davison’s hops.
“I watched the high school mixtape,” White said with a smile. “I was aware.”
JD Davison’s Celtics teammates saw this jump coming
JD Davison’s teammates observed that he had noticeably improved entering this season.
“You could tell he took it to another level in training camp,” Jaylen Brown said last month. “I think he’s been able to learn from our guys, going against Payton [Pritchard], going against Jrue [Holiday] and Derrick [White]. He’s gotten so much better, and that’s credit to him. He’s developed at a high rate.”
Jrue Holiday gave perhaps the biggest endorsement for the young guard.
“He’s definitely going to be a really good NBA player,” he said.
Derrick White has called Davison the team’s best lob thrower on numerous occasions and praised his ability to make reads in the pick-and-roll.
Al Horford has been impressed by his work ethic and increased buy-in over the past three seasons.
“JD gets it,” Horford told CelticsBlog last month.
JD Davison has been with the Celtics for this most recent stretch
After the conclusion of the Maine Celtics playoffs on Sunday, Davison rejoined the Celtics on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Brown, a close friend of Davison’s, smiled when he saw the 22-year-old in the Celtics’ locker room in New York City.
“Great season, my boy,” he said to Davison. “Onto bigger and better things.”
Then, upon learning Davison’s ridiculous postseason averages, the 2024 Finals MVP grinned and jokingly declared, “He learned that from me!”
But Davison told CelticsBlog that night that he wasn’t thinking about next steps just yet — though the ultimate goal of getting a contract was one he’s referenced many times over the years.
“Right now?” Davison said. “Just be where my feet are.”
Now, the Alabama guard gets the long-awaited opportunity: a full contract in the NBA.
