Johnny Davis declares for the NBA Draft

March 31, 2022
|In Badgers
|By Zach Heilprin

Johnny Davis is headed to the NBA.

The Wisconsin All-American made the announcement Thursday afternoon on ESPN’s NBA Today.

Davis leaves Wisconsin after putting together one of the best seasons in school history. He led the team in points (19.7), rebounds (8.2) and steals (1.2) per game, while finishing second in assists (2.1). Those figures helped him become the fourth Wisconsin player in the modern era to be named the Big Ten Player of the Year. He earned consensus first-team All-American honors and was a finalist for the Wooden Award, which goes to the best player in the country.

The La Crosse product is the third Badgers player since 2000 to leave school early, joining Devin Harris (2004) and Sam Dekker (2015). Harris ended up being an NBA lottery pick, while Dekker was also a first-round pick. It’s still early in the pre-draft process, but Davis is projected to be a first-round pick, with ESPN’s latest mock draft sending him to Washington with the ninth pick.

Davis’ departure, along with forwards Ben Carlson and Matthew Mors transferring, the Badgers have three open scholarships for next year’s team. Those spots are likely to filled by dipping into the NCAA’s transfer portal.