NBA breakthrough is Celtics guard JD Davison’s next goal after G-League MVP

BOSTON — JD Davison packed up a suitcase and handbag near his NBA locker and prepared to leave for the road. The Celtics two-way guard received G League MVP honors earlier in the week, arrived in Boston to speak about the award, played five minutes at the end of the Celtics’ loss to the Heat then drove to New York City for Maine’s playoff game alongside Jordan Walsh.

That’s the story of Davison’s season — really, his three years with the Celtics. This year, he’s separated himself from the field in the G League, joined the Celtics’ pro roster more than ever before, and been the picture of consistency for both squads. That impressed Joe Mazzulla more than Davison’s 25.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game that made his case for MVP. Davison often boarded early flights to join Boston across the map and returned to Maine at odd times to lead them to a third straight postseason appearance.

“It’s the two-way grind,” Davison told CelticsBlog after the game. “That’s what I signed up for, but you gotta stay locked in, trying to be where your feet are.”

Davison centered his mind on that day-to-day approach after signing a third straight two-way last offseason. He didn’t wonder why no NBA opportunities emerged, lament on remaining the organization’s guard depth chart or the fact that he rarely played rotation minutes with Boston across his first three seasons. Brad Stevens emphasized bringing him back and Davison, who also won a championship ring despite doing most of his work two states north, didn’t hesitate to sign up for another year.

While Jordan Walsh poured a beer on his head in the locker room after Game 5 of the Finals, Davison yelled, “come on, man. Back-to-back, we need this.”

Almost one year later, when Maine’s playoff run concludes and the regular season ends, Davison won’t be eligible for NBA playoff minutes if he remains on a two-way deal. Boston can affirm the work he’s put in and structure he’s provided Maine’s development program by converting him to the 15th roster spot. But either way, the question remains how the former No. 53 overall pick, still only 22-years-old, will make his long-awaited NBA entrance. He said in the past that he doesn’t know what it’ll take. Celtics teammates told our Noa Dalzell that they believe in his NBA abilities. Jaylen Brown, in particular, grew to mentor him.

“Knowing where I want to get to, if you want to be a point guard in this league, you gotta be able to talk and lead the guys,” Davison said on Wednesday. “So, knowing that I gotta do that, night in and night out, I gotta break that (shyness) and try to be the best I can be. Just knowing everybody’s journey is different, I take my days, day-by-day, step-by-step and try to stay in the moment, whether I’m playing in the G-League or whether I’m up with the big club. Trying to just stay in the moment and be me at all times … knowing the end goal.”

Davison’s spot NBA opportunities show the hurdle that remains in front of him. While sparse, limited and tough to draw from given that many came late in games, you can at least see the limitations that will challenge his transition, playing a mostly on-ball point guard role at 6-1 while peaking at 33.2% from three in the G-League. Few pass-first guards without a reliable shot exist in the NBA, and defenses attack scoring weaknesses so aggressively now that many teams won’t let him play through struggles for long.

There’s also an influx of guard talent across the league that grows deeper with each passing draft. Each team has a veteran lead guard or a young point man of the future while position-less basketball pulls in ball-handlers from positions outside of guard. The role Rajon Rondo once filled is becoming increasingly rare across the league.

Dallas could use some depth if Kyrie Irving misses time next year, Portland gave Dalano Banton a chance, Sacramento recently signed Markelle Fultz, Charlotte could use some help at point and Charles Lee’s presence there at least provides a Boston connection. Mike Conley turns 38 next season for Minnesota. The Heat have struggled to find consistent guard play alongside Tyler Herro post-Jimmy Butler. The Jazz love to sign former Celtics.

Then, there’s Boston, facing difficult decisions this offseason that could include moving on from Jrue Holiday, according to Jake Fischer. The Celtics have hyped their track record of funneling talent from the G League to NBA level, and there’s familiarity with Davison. Minutes wouldn’t be guaranteed with Derrick White, Payton Pritchard and perhaps a rookie or veteran addition in front of him, but it’s not unimaginable to think Davison could stay in the mix.

There’s also the reality that G League developments often lead to NBA opportunities elsewhere. The Celtics themselves signed Drew Peterson away from the Heat program. Miles Norris played with Atlanta and Memphis before joining Boston. There’s no clear destination for Davison even with an MVP in hand, but he’s focused on the next city on the map.

During those long waits and travel days, he stretches his legs, talks to his mom on the phone and remembers what he signed up for. Then, he breaks a sweat at the arena, shoots a few shots and he joins the team on the floor for tip-off. Last month, a trip west led to his first significant NBA run alongside Jayson Tatum in the first half at Portland.

“The Utah game, not too long ago, we flew, got delayed, so we had to get a whole other flight, flight had to stop, so we got to the game around 6:30, 6:40, the game started at 7, so we had to throw the clothes on and get on the court,” he recalled. “We drove from Maine, flew from Boston, had a direct flight to Utah and it got cancelled, so we had to get another flight. So we went from Delta Airlines all the way to United Airlines, where the flight was at 12, went from there to Chicago, then Chicago to Utah.”