Davonte Davis
SENIOR / JACKSONVILLE NORTH PULASKI HIGH SCHOOL
MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR, OUTSTANDING PLAYER: BOYS BASKETBALL ......
>> WHY HE WON
Abig smile comes across the face of Davonte Davis when his name is called at a recent conference game against Sylvan Hills. The 6-4 point guard runs through rows of his teammates and the cheerleaders, giving out high-fives along the way. At the end of the rows, his smile grows as he poses for the cameras. Once the game starts, though, Davis is all business.
The 2019-2020 school year was a big one for Davis, a senior at Jacksonville North Pulaski High School. Davis led his team to a 20-5 record and the 5A state title and committed to joining the University of Arkansas Razorbacks next year.
Davis put up stellar stats this season, averaging 21 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals each game. Davis also put up double-digit scoring and had 17 double-doubles and seven triple-doubles.
“I just want to be great,” Davis said. “I’ve got goals, and I feel like if I continue to put my work in and pay my dues and just try to make my craft better and better every single day … no matter if it’s shooting, conditioning, strengthening … I’ll get better.”
Davis’ dedication to self-improvement and his outstanding performance on the court has earned him the title of 2020 All-Arkansas Preps Male Athlete of the Year. Davis has also been named Outstanding Player of the Year for Boys Basketball.
“I’ve been on the [Preps] First Team for the past two years,” he said. “It feels really good to win something like this, knowing that not many people win this award.”
Victor Joyner, JNPHS boys basketball coach, said Davis is intensely competitive on the court, and he’s never seen an athlete as dedicated as Davis. Joyner also said Davis has developed outstanding court vision, a skill that is very hard to teach.
“[Davonte’s] determined to get better every day,” Joyner said. “[It’s his] work ethic. He works out before school, he practices, and sometimes he works out after practice. It’s just his determination.”
Davis, ranked 85th on the ESPN Top 100 website, started playing sports when he was around 6 years old, including football, baseball and basketball. ESPN also lists Davis as the 19th-best shooting guard. He said his entire family plays sports, and once he transferred to Jacksonville Lighthouse Charter School in the ninth grade, he decided he was going to stick to basketball because the school didn’t offer football or baseball.
His grandmother Yvette Davis said jokingly that she is glad that Davonte, a fourtime all-state player, chose basketball because it meant she could attend all
his games without having to sit in the cold or heat like she would for the outdoor sports.
Yvette said Davonte gets his drive from her and his grandfather and mother. She also said Davonte has a natural talent, but they did have to teach him how to shoot with his right hand because he is left-handed.
Joyner said one of the biggest improvements Davonte Davis has made is his leadership skills. Joyner said Davis used to be a bit of a rebel, but now he has become more coachable over the past few years.
“He got a little more poised with playing the game and learning how to execute and do the things that you do to run and be a point guard that runs the team. He got much, much better from the first year to the second year,” Joyner said. “You can see the results the second year, and once he allowed himself to be a little bit more coachable, and once we both got on the same page, then the team really took off.”
Joyner said Davis’ leadership skills are “off the charts.” He said that when Davis realized how much command he had over the team and took responsibility, the group became better.
“We got him to realize, ‘You are the leader; you are the quarterback. [The team] feeds off of you, not only on the court,’” Joyner said. “He started to relish in [the responsibility] once he accepted it.”
In the classroom, Davis carries a 2.8 grade-point average and is a member of the National Honor Society and DECA, a program designed to prepare students for college. Davis hopes to study strategy management or zoology at the University of Arkansas. He said he loves animals and wants to understand them better.
“Good things are coming for me,” he said. “I feel like as long as I put in my work and push everyone around me that things for me and the people around me will get better as time goes on.”
Yvette said all members of the family are big Razorback fans, so they were very proud when he signed with the team.
“He’s always been very competitive,” Yvette said. “He’s a great young man. He’s always been a good kid.”
IT FEELS REALLY GOOD to win something like this.” — Davonte Davis, ALL-ARKANSAS PREPS
MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AND OUTSTANDING PLAYER OF THE YEAR FOR BOYS BASKETBALL