Ricky Davis -- yes, that Ricky Davis who played in NBA from 1998-2010 -- is in #Knicks mini-camp today/tomorrow with 9 other camp hopefuls.
— Jared Zwerling (@JaredZwerling) September 17, 2013
I have a soft spot for amazingly talented and athletic high flying knuckleheads that had all of the tools to be great but just wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed. Tyree Ricardo "Ricky" Davis aka Get Buckets is a poster child for the type of player I'm talking about.
From day 1 with the Charlotte Hornets, Davis was a common sight on NBA Inside Stuff's Jam Session and Sportscenter top plays and with running mate Baron Davis I thought the Davis boys were going to be a 2 man nightmare for defenders for years to come. Well, Get Buckets was a nightmare to guard but he became mostly known in the league for being a player that was supposedly a nightmare to play with and coach although Pat Riley once said he regretted trading Davis and that he was never a problem.
The two most famous knucklehead plays most will remember Davis for is when he intentionally missed a shot at his team's own basket with seconds left in a 25 point win against the Jazz so he could record a triple double. The triple double didn't count and he was fined by the Cavs and given the nickname "Wrong Way" for his attempt at stat padding. In a 2011 interview while playing in the NBDL, Davis talked about his only NBA regret.
"I did some bad things, but the only thing I regret is my triple-double. But everything else comes with experience. People forget I got drafted when I was 17, so I had a lot of young ‘myself-myself’ attitude, and now it’s more about being part of a team, and more of what I can do to help the team."
Davis found himself in Bean Town the next season where he is mostly known for missing a between the legs dunk in the middle of a game. Lucky for Davis he was able to get the rebound, that counted, and score in classic Davis fashion with a windmill dunk.
In Davis' defense, he can throw down between the legs dunks in his sleep and during the 2000 NBA dunk contest he became the first person to ever pull off a between the legs 2 hand reverse dunk. The underrated first is rarely mentioned but the same goes for when he did pull off a between the legs dunk in the middle of a game with the Cavs but since that was the Pre-Bron Cavs nobody noticed or cared.
So here we are 1o years since his most famous knucklehead plays and with the humbling experience of leaving the league and playing in the NBDL and overseas with China, France and Puerto Rico, Davis is hoping he still has enough gas in the tank and a sharper tool in the shed to get back in the NBA.