Davis Needs To Choose His Path

By Michael Pina
for HOOPSADDICT.com

Published: October 27, 2009

Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals was supposed to be the turning point in Glen Davis’ career. When he hit that game winner, ran down the sideline and rejoiced triumphantly on Orlando’s home court, Davis no longer went by the name Big Baby, but simply Glen. It was a moment in the sun, a coming out party of sorts for a player who had officially gained the respect of both his coaches and veteran teammates.

Now, thanks to an unfortunate mistake, Davis faces a different kind of turning point. If it weren’t for the fact he’s about to begin just his third season, you might even call it a crossroads.

It appears that after a none too pleasant comment was made about Davis’ girlfriend by an allegedly drunk college teammate, fisticuffs ensued. Davis fractured his right thumb, had successful surgery this afternoon at New England Baptist Hospital and is expected to be out at least six weeks.

After the inevitable suspension brought down by ownership, there won’t be any cross-country team flights to help build the camaraderie, chemistry and unity every championship team needs. No grueling practices he’ll share with his teammates, old and new. Davis is on an island right now and how he responds will surely dictate the rest of his career.

Davis has two roads he can travel down right now. The first being the one of a man and the other the one of a figurative baby. From this day forward Glen Davis needs to actively request that people refer to him as “Glen Davis” and that surname only.

Not that his infamously childish moniker is self proclaimed, as Davis likes to refer to himself as the Ticket Stub (sidekick to Kevin Garnett’s Big Ticket), but “Big Baby” needs to go. He’s a 23-year-old millionaire who’s got to grab hold of his responsibilities in the here and now before things really get out of hand.

Should the former SEC player of the year choose to work out every day to the best his right thumb will allow (run, stay in shape, get his legs right, maybe work on some left handed free throws) then he’ll be back to where he was before the injury, headed in the direction of a long, productive career.

If, on the other hand he chooses to keep the Big Baby nickname, pout, continue to whine about lack of minutes and shoot himself in the foot, then Davis isn’t doing anyone any favors, most notably himself.

He’s clearly an emotional guy and that’s perfectly fine. Players like him that place their hearts on their jersey strap are more than welcome by true basketball fans that still look at the game more as a sport than a business driven mode of entertainment.

With that being said, he let Doc Rivers down. Now the Celtics coach will not only be forced to play Kevin Garnett and Rasheed Wallace more minutes than he had originally hoped, risking injury among other negating things, but the unproven Shelden Williams will be on the floor much more than he wanted. His signing was viewed as an insurance policy should something unforeseen like his injury happen so on that front Danny Ainge deserves his due.

Whichever road Davis chooses, he’s got a long way to go before obtaining the respect he had already gained just a few short months ago.

One Comment on "Davis Needs To Choose His Path"

Pariuri Sportive on Wed, 28th Oct 2009 6:23 am

Rasheed Wallace fit very well in BOS team. He plays as he wants to tell us “I like to play … they need me” not as he played last season at the end @ DET Pistons. Doc Rivers will know better how he manage his team, not for achieve those 72 games as R.W. said, but for the end of PlayOff.

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Davis Needs To Choose His Path

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