Despite the Loss, Trotwood Grad Amari Davis shows Wright State that they Continue to Drop the Ball;
Davis Erupts for 35 in Raiders win
By Deon Cash
Amari Davis, one of the elite players in the Horizon League in only his sophomore year, put on a absolute show at the Nutter Center last weekend.
His Wisconsin Green-Bay squad lost to Wright State, as the Raiders used a balanced scoring effort to take down Green Bay. Horizon League Player of The Year Candidate Louden Love, the Raiders star big man, led the way with another big effort (19 pts).
However, despite the loss, the stage was all Davis, in his second visit to the Nutter since committing to Green Bay. The smooth but explosive 6'5 guard showed why, in another year or so, the NBA could and should come calling, as Davis torched the Raiders defense all night to the tune of 35 points.
He also silenced the pro experts and naysayers, who said he didn’t have NBA range, as he went 7-9 from 3-point range a week ago, and dropped a couple more in the game to show that his whole game has expanded.
Wright State, who has been one of the elite teams in the Horizon League over the Scott Nagy tenure, had a real chance to grab Davis, the OHSAA D-2 Player of the Year his senior season at Trotwood. Davis would also lead the Rams to a state championship as they erased the demons and hoisted the trophy just 2 years ago.
While en route to that championship, he displayed his talent at the Nutter Center, right in front of the Raider coaches, scout department, upper management and alumni.
Coach Nagy and his staff, who have recruited sparingly in the city of Dayton, decided that they didn’t need Davis, or Myles Belyeu, Amir Foster, or Torrey Patton for that matter. When it came to Trotwood, the Raiders passed on all of their recent elite recruits, along with Dunbar, Thurgood, and Wayne for that matter.
When you look at the top players over the last 3 or 4 years they are all achieving great success either in the Horizon League or in other leagues.
Here are a list of names that the Raiders have passed up on:
Myles Belyeu, Trotwood; Saginaw Valley
Isaiah Trice, Wayne; Sinclair CC
Darius Quisenberry, Wayne; Youngstown State
Darnell Hoskins, Thurgood; Saginaw Valley
Caleb McConnell, Dunbar; Rutgers
Devon Baker, Dunbar; NC Wilmington
Torrey Patton, Trotwood; Cleveland State
Deshon Parker, Wayne; Appalachian State
Evan Clayborne, Thurgood; Cleveland State
The amusing part about it?
Quisenberry, Davis, and Patton will all probably be 1st Team All-League. And all 3 were seriously considering Wright State as a option.
Nagy and his staff have really never admitted that they have dropped the ball on a couple of these guys. But in reality, this is the difference between the Raiders becoming a mid-major powerhouse or just being a solid team in the Horizon League.
While it is good that the Raiders are one of the top teams in the conference, the general basketball purists and fans in Dayton can’t really relate to the Raiders, simply because there isn’t ever any elite homegrown talent on the team.
While Wright State seems to be ok with this strategy, for some reason, until they get some local flavor, nobody in Dayton will take the Raiders seriously until they start grabbing elite talent from the inner city, specifically from the communities of Dayton, Trotwood, Huber Heights.
And that, in a nutshell, is why the Dayton Flyers don’t entertain the Gem City Battle anymore.
While the Raiders remain good, they remain irrelevant in the main scope of sports in dayton, simply because they continue to pass on possible pro prospects year after year.
Will Nagy and his staff finally step up? While there aren’t many Amari Davises out here, there are some new stars in the fold on the way. Will the Raiders continue to drop the ball and opt out on local talent? Will we continue to see supreme talents like Davis, Patton, and Quisenberry play in the same conference, with fire in their eyes and a real reason to stick it to the Raiders?
Stay tuned.
In the meantime?
Salute Davis, the respectful, calm young man with a savage demeanor on the court who showed not only Wright State, but the entire conference and NBA scouts that he is closer to being NBA ready than most think.
Put this kid on the NBA radar right now.
“It felt good to come back and play really well, but we wanted the win." Davis said.
Spoken like a true champion.
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