Getty Ricky Davis #12 and Paul Pierce #34 of the Boston Celtics.
Fans who grew up rooting for the Boston Celtics during the 2000s will remember this player. Ricky Davis, who played for the team from 2003 to 2006, has just now been announced as the new head coach for the boys’ basketball team at Minneapolis North, according to Chris Long of KSTP-TV Sports.
Per a source w/ knowledge of the situation, former #Timberwolves player & 13-year NBA vet Ricky Davis is expected to be announced as the new boys basketball coach at Minneapolis North (@NPolarHoops).
He’d succeed legendary coach Larry McKenzie, who retired last month.
In his time with the Celtics, Davis helped the team make the playoffs in 2004 and 2005, where they lost against the Indiana Pacers in the first round both times. In 2005, Davis received strong consideration as the league’s Sixth Man of the Year, but he placed second behind Ben Gordon of the Chicago Bulls that year.
In the 91 games he played for the Celtics, Davis averaged 16 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.1 steals a game while shooting 47.4 percent from the field and 34.3 percent from three, according to StatMuse. Davis was traded mid-season to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Wally Szczerbiak, among others, in 2006, who was then traded in the deal that brought in Ray Allen.
Davis then made pit stops with the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers before he played his last NBA game in 2010. While Celtics fans remember him for what he did for the team when he played there, NBA fans remember Davis for one particular incident that lives in infamy.
Davis’ Infamous ‘Triple-Double’ Attempt
Before being traded to the Celtics, Davis played for the Cleveland Cavaliers. On March 16, 2003, the Cavaliers were in the midst of blowing out the Utah Jazz, 120-95, when with six seconds left, Davis, who had 26 points, 12 assists, and nine rebounds, intentionally missed a shot on his own basket in an attempt to secure both his 10th rebound and a triple-double. Jazz guard Deshawn Stevenson took exception to Davis’ actions and shoved him.
After the game, Jazz Head Coach Jerry Sloan called out Davis for his actions at the end of the game.
To top it all off, Davis was not awarded for rebounding the miss on his own basket in the closing seconds of the game, meaning that he failed to notch the triple-double anyway.
Davis is not the only player in NBA history to resort to questionable means to get a triple-double. Other players like JaVale McGee and Andray Blatche both did the same when they played for the Washington Wizards. Much like Davis, they failed, but the one difference between them and him is that they didn’t revert to shooting on their own basket to pull it off.
While Davis last played in the NBA in 2010, he made several attempts to come back into the league. That included playing for the Celtics G-League affiliate during the 2011-12 season.
Davis’ Return to the Celtics
Back when the NBA’s G-League was considered the National Basketball Development League, or in other words, the NBDL, Davis joined the Celtics’ affiliate back when they were called the Maine Red Claws.
In the 11 games he played for the Red Claws, Davis averaged 8.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists while shooting 39.4 percent from the field and 28 percent from three in the 25.2 minutes he played a game. He did not return after the season ended.
Davis had multiple stints both in the NBDL and overseas until he called it quits in 2014.