Alabama Guard JD Davison Selected at the 2022 NBA Draft

Entering his freshman season, Davison was projected to be a lottery pick in the 2022 NBA Draft after a one-and-done season. Davison ultimately opted to play just one season with the Crimson Tide, but his draft potential tanked following what many fans considered to be an underwhelming freshman year.

In the 2021-22 season, Davison saw playing time in 33 games with six starts on the year. Averaging 25.8 minutes per game, Davison finished fourth on the team in points with 282, an average of 8.5 per game. He also finished third on the team with 157 rebounds and second in assists with 95 — just three assists shy of team leader Jahvon Quinerly.

Davison concluded his freshman season with a field goal percentage of .463 and a three-point percentage of .301.

Following Alabama's 68-67 victory over Arkansas back in February, head coach Nate Oats remarked on Davison's growth as a player.

"The biggest area of growth I think is he's gotten more comfortable playing more aggressive on offense as he's played harder on D," Oats said. "I think when you just play harder, fly around, don't overthink your offense too much — you just play really hard on defense and let the offense flow and be aggressive on offense. That's when he's his best, so I think he's been playing a lot harder. He's getting some rebounds, some blocks and steals. He's getting better on the defensive end and I think his offense is just becoming more comfortable as he gets more aggressive, the more he gets himself into the game on the defensive end."

"I'm not sure if there's one particular game where it feels like the light just went on, but I think he was gradually getting better and he's definitely playing a lot better now than he was a month ago, for sure."

While Davison didn't make quite the impact that Crimson Tide fans wanted to see from him last season, he still maintained his status as one of the most athletic freshman guards in the country. His athleticism and physicality continued to be key factors in why Davison remained a solid NBA Draft prospect.

With Davison now knowing his NBA destination, Alabama still has two potential NBA players left on the board in guards Keon Ellis and Jaden Shackelford. According to Sports Illustrated, Ellis is the No. 45 overall prospect, while Shackelford sits at No. 93.

Here is a draft capsule for Davison, courtesy of Sports Illustrated:

57. J.D. Davison, G, Alabama | Freshman

Height: 6' 2" | Weight: 195 | Age: 19 | Last rank: 57

Davison is one of the better athletes in the draft and entered this season with first-round hype, but didn’t build the most convincing case at Alabama and makes much more sense as a second-round flier. He’s a quality passer and explosive leaper, but lacks the polish to run a team at this point, and doesn’t threaten enough away from the ball to have a pathway to early minutes. Davison probably needs immediate time in the G League, where he can better learn the nuances of guard play and work on his jumper. NBA teams will simply go underneath ball screens until he proves he can make shots off the dribble, and he has a tendency to float in and out of games. He remains a viable second-round option.