Rookie Davis eager to ‘learn’ on the job

Liberty's first-round pick relishes two-way role in Brooklyn

April 18, 2024 John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

New York's first-round draft pick Marquesha Davis (left) is expected to come off the bench and help the Liberty on both ends of the floor this coming season. AP Photo by Michael Caterina

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Liberty rookie Marquesha Davis had to hear 10 names called before learning she’d be playing in Brooklyn this summer.

But according to the 6-foot guard out of Mississippi, it was well worth the wait.

“I would say what excites me the most is coming into this Liberty team and learning from the vets that are there,” Davis gushed after being selected 11th overall in Monday night’s WNBA Draft at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Davis will have more than just a few veterans to feed off when training camp opens later this month.

She can pick the brain of reigning league Most Valuable Player Breanna Stewart, a two-time winner of the coveted honor and two-time WNBA Finals MVP.

Or, she can go down a few lockers and ask 2021 WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones what it was like to play in the Finals with both New York and Connecticut during her career.

Then, Davis might want to take a look at the way the league’s 3-point shooter extraordinaire Sabrina Ionescu has developed since being selected first overall in 2020, a pick that sparked the Liberty’s ascension from worst in the league to first in the Eastern Conference last season.

Former All-Star Betnijah Laney-Hamilton and future Hall of Fame point guard Courtney Vandersloot may also have some advice to offer a player just about to cut her teeth on the best women’s basketball circuit in the world.

Davis will not be expected to have an immediate impact on a roster composed of some of the WNBA’s top players, as well as coach Sandy Brondello, who guided New York back to the Finals for the first time since 2002 last summer.

But the McGehee, Arkansas native was selected to shore up New York’s defense, which finished second only to defending back-to-back WNBA champion Las Vegas in 2023 with 89.2 points allowed per game.

She will also compete to be the Liberty’s first guard off the bench behind Ionescu and Vandersloot after averaging a team-high 14.0 points per game for the Rebels this past season.

Davis also pulled down 4.7 rebounds per contest while leading Ole Miss with 1.5 steals.

She may not match those gaudy figures in Brooklyn this summer, but Davis will likely have a chance to hit the hardwood before fellow draftees Esmery Martinez, Jessika Carter and Kaitlyn Davis.

New York also reportedly signed Colorado guard Jaylyn Sherrod as a non-drafted free agent following the draft.

Colorado University’s Jaylyn Sherrod was reportedly signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Liberty as they prepare to open training camp in Brooklyn on April 28. AP Photo by Charlie Riedel

Davis already has an inkling that the Liberty are looking for versatility from their first-round pick.

“I would say something that stood out to me is them looking basically for a two-way player and me being just that,” she said during her post-draft interviews.

“So knowing that I can come in and be a two-way player and make an impact that way is something that I look forward to.”

With less than 10 days to go before the Liberty officially open camp, Davis will have some adjustments to make.

However, she won’t have to take on the responsibility of turning this franchise’s fortunes around as Ionescu did four years ago.

Nor will she have to look far for a superstar in her own locker room before her own career begins to take wing.

“Just coming in and having a certain role (on this team) and knowing what’s expected of you and knowing that you don’t have to be the superhero or anything like that,” Davis said.

“So I would say that that would definitely make it a lot better.”

***

Though they’ve unofficially selected their new coach, the Brooklyn Nets are still waiting for Jordi Fernandez.

The Sacramento Kings’ top assistant, who was reportedly hired by general manger Sean Marks following a month-long search, is still at work for his current employer.

The Kings survived Tuesday night’s play-in tournament game against Golden State, pulling away for a 118-94 victory over the Warriors in the 9-10 matchup.

Now, Sacramento will visit New Orleans Friday night with a chance to grab the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference and a first-round playoff showdown with Oklahoma City.

That potential best-of-7 series would further delay Fernandez’s ability to get fully involved with his new duties here in Brooklyn.

Reported Nets coaching hire Jordi Fernandez is still working the bench for the Sacramento Kings as they prepare for Friday night’s play-in tournament game vs. New Orleans. AP Photo by David Zalubowski

But the Nets can surely wait, considering their campaign ended last week.

Brooklyn is coming off its first non-playoff season in six years and still has a couple of months to prepare for the NBA Draft in June.

Friday’s Kings-Pelicans game will be on TNT at 9:30 p.m.

New Orleans will be without star forward Zion Williamson, who suffered a strained left hamstring late in Tuesday’s loss to LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers despite putting up 40 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.