Congratulations, It's a Big Baby!: Glen Davis Comes to Boston

Tractor Traylor? Charles Barkley?

Oliver Miller lite?

If this were a game show, it would be

"I’ve Got a Secret."

The Boston Celtics just obtained one of their most unusual players...ever.

Or, they just got a player with obvious weight and conditioning issues.

Two things come to mind when you think of Glen "Big Baby" Davis:

Girth.           

Exuberance.

Boston’s latest "not-so" big...if anyone can ever say that about a 6'9", 289-pounder (listed)...cut his teeth with LSU's Final Four squad from two years ago. Davis teamed that season with 2006 lotto pick Tyrus Thomas on a team that lost to eventual runner-up UCLA.

Yes, Davis is considered undersized for an NBA 4 or 5. His lack of leaping ability is expected to be a hindrance at the next level. He opted for the NBA draft after an individually successful junior year.

I haven’t seen it yet, but there's a definite crazy side to Big Baby. His Hoopedia bio says he's regarded by some as a "very entertaining standup comedian and karaoke singer." In fact, he performed at LSU’s Student Union in November 2006. 

Video anyone?

In any event, the Celtics have replaced Delonte West, an artistic, offbeat humorist (in a Jack Handey sort of way), with the rambunctious Davis and the eccentric Scot Pollard.

Nonconformists of the world, unite!

The Celtic locker room will never be the same.

All that said, the only performances Celtic fans care about are the on-court ones. I used to love Delonte, but my old saying for "Cookies" holds true for Glen:

It’s nice to be funny. It’s better to be money.

What will we get when our corpulent, enthusiastic man-child enters a game?

For the record, let me state that I wanted Boston to take Davis at pick number 32. When they made the trade with Seattle, the C's got Davis as their "designated" pick at number 35.

I'll also say that I thought Josh McRoberts would be gone by the early second round. He wasn’t. Between the two, I’m not sure which I would have taken...but it might have been McRoberts. Time will tell which player will have more success in the NBA.

At the moment, I’m quite happy with Davis. He projects out as an NBA 4. There's message-board talk about him playing a little 3 and even getting some time at center. With the weight loss, he'll  mostly play power forward, IMO.

The college numbers...

2007 (Jr.): 17.7  points and 10.4 rebounds (led the SEC in rebounding)

2006 (Soph.): 18.6 pts and 9.7 rebounds

  

SEC Player of the Year, third team All-American, John Wooden All-American, All-Atlantic Tourney team honoree—all in 2006.

Davis finished his junior year as the only player other than Shaq to collect 1,500 points, 900 rebounds, and 100 blocks at LSU. Make no mistake, Glen Davis will never be confused for Shaquille O’Neal. Still, that’s good production from an active big man.

Like Joakim Noah, Glen may have gone earlier on Draft Day had he declared himself eligible in 2006. Noah has a second-consecutive NCAA title to soothe him. Davis gets a chance to play for a contending team in his first NBA season. Not too shabby...but at less scratch than he might have gotten.

Speaking of scratch, Hoopshype still doesn’t have any contract information for either of the Celtics' second-round draft picks—Davis and Gabe Pruitt. I wonder what's holding things up. Some think it's because Ainge is waiting on Reggie Miller before determining how much 'extra' MLE he has left to use on signing the two new guys.

Davis' playing time will depend on a number of things. He'll fight Leon Powe for minutes, and Powe has been in Boston for a whole year. Their games are rather different, but they're both expected to rebound.

How well either of them can defend the league’s uber power forwards may determine how well the Celtics do when Kevin Garnett is off the court. It may also determine how much time Brian Scalabrine sees.

The summer league head-to-head between Powe and Davis...

Powe: 28.8 min, 12.4 pts, .542 FG%, 7.8 rbds, 2.2 TOs, 0 blks

Davis: 27 min, 12 pts, .432 FG%, 9.8 rbds, 3.2 TOs, 1.8 blks

I’m not sure that these SL stats will be accurate predictors of how each player does going forward—but they're the only guide we have to look at for now.

I think Davis will find his way to a degree of NBA success, though how much is anybody’s guess at this point. My trust is as much in Danny Ainge’s ability to glean second-round talent as it is in Glen’s particular game and upside.

Rookiepedia says this about Davis:

Known for his excellent post play, is able to score with his back to the basket or by facing up and moving past his defender. Tough to move on the block, on offense and defense. Known for his excellent rebounding skills.

After shedding weight last offseason, Davis still weighs too much for the NBA, which is cause for concern. Conditioning is a question and he struggles to get up and down the floor quickly. Best suited for a slow tempo team.

Doesn’t sound like a good fit for an up-tempo team...but I’m not positive the Celtics will be an up-tempo team all the time. Half court offense will be apart of the Cs game this year.

Maybe Davis fits after all.

Why I think he may make it:

He's an active big man with very good basketball skills. He comes from a good program in a tough conference. He was an important part of a run that got LSU within shouting distance of an NCAA title. Most importantly, he's said to exude charisma and confidence.

If Davis makes it, it will be his mental edge that makes a difference—as it does for all players who make it in the NBA. I’m not into the brain doctor stuff, but Big Baby seems to have an advantage there.

Here's a peek into his mental outlook while in the midst of 13 straight predraft work outs, from his own writing...

I played against some good players and am ready for this process to be over with. All these workouts are crazy.

Physically, it’s exhausting, but mentally, you’re willing to do anything. But physically, your body...when your body goes, your mind goes. But my mind is strong, but my body’s a little weary. Mentally, I was into it, but physically, my legs and my shot wasn’t falling today. But, altogether, I had a good workout.

And then this...

...when it comes to being physically tired, you have to be mentally strong and push yourself, you need to tell yourself you need to keep going. And it’s not like back-to-back games. The rest period between periods is short and the other thing is you don’t fly five days a week, but my frequent flier miles are crazy.

That sounds like a predictor of what we can expect from Glen Davis. He'll give the Celtics everything he’s got. Some nights the shot might not drop and the legs will be tired, especially in the 82-game marathon they call an NBA season. But Glen will mentally push himself to his utmost.

Crazy? I wish every player were that crazy.

Leon Powe—meet your competition.

It’s going to be fun watching this battle develop.

This article also appeared on the site Celtics 17.