Ralph Davis (basketball)

Ralph E. Davis Jr. (born September 7, 1938) is an American former professional basketball player who played two seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and was a starter on two NCAA Final Four teams at the University of Cincinnati.

Ralph Davis
Personal information
Born (1938-09-07) September 7, 1938
Vanceburg, Kentucky
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolLewis County (Vanceburg, Kentucky)
CollegeCincinnati (1957–1960)
NBA draft1960 / Round: 3 / Pick: 17th overall
Selected by the Cincinnati Royals
Playing career1960–1962
PositionShooting guard
Number10, 25
Career history
1960–1961Cincinnati Royals
1961–1962Chicago Packers
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-MVC (1959)
Career NBA statistics
Points1,195 (8.0 ppg)
Rebounds248 (1.7 rpg)
Assists424 (2.8 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life

Davis was born in Vanceburg, Kentucky, the son of Ralph E. Davis Sr., a self-employed businessman, and Anna Louis (Plummer) Davis.[1] He played basketball at Lewis County High School in Vanceburg. He scored 1,810 points for the Lions and averaged 26.4 points and 18 rebounds per game as a senior.[2] He was an all-district selection for three years. As a senior in 1956 he was named second team all-state by Louisville Courier-Journal as he led the Lions to the Eastern Kentucky Conference title.[3] He was also an honor student.[4]

College career

Davis attended the University of Cincinnati, where he was a three-year starter for the Bearcats and coach George Smith.

As a sophomore in 1957–58, he averaged 7.9points per game as the Bearcats posted a 25-1record and won the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) title[5] led by fellow sophomore and future Hall-of-Famer forward Oscar Robertson and future longtime NBA player Connie Dierking.[5]

As a junior in 1958–59, Davis started at point guard alongside Carl Bouldin and averaged 15.5 points (second to Robertson), 4.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds as the Bearcats were again MVC champions and Davis was named All-MVC. The 26-4 Bearcats advanced to the NCAA Final Four, where they finished in third place.[5]

As a senior in 1959–60, Davis posted averages of 13.7 points (again second to Robertson), 4.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game while shooting 50 percent from the field as again the Bearcats won the league crown. Davis was named All-MVC[5][6] and was also named second-team All-American by Converse. The Bearcats went 28-2, again advancing to the Final Four and again finishing third.[5]

Davis' 1,093 career points ranked sixth in Cincinnati history upon his graduation in 1960.[5]

NBA career

Davis was drafted in the third round (17th overall) of the 1960 NBA draft by the Cincinnati Royals.[7]

As a rookie in 1960–61, he played in 73 games, averaged 16.6 minutes, 2.4 assists and 1.2 rebounds per game as a reserve guard for the 33-46 Royals.[7]

On April 26, 1961 he was drafted by the Chicago Packers in the NBA expansion draft. For the 1961–62 season, in 77 games Davis' playing time increased to nearly 26 minutes per game as he posted career-high averages of 10.4 points, 3.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game[7] for the 18-62 expansion team.[8] In November 1961, the Packers had traded Davis to the St. Louis Hawks in a multi-player deal,[9][10] but the trade was rescinded by NBA Commissioner Maurice Podoloff.[11]

In 1962 he was officially traded to the St. Louis Hawks, but he did not play and his NBA career ended after two seasons.[7]

Personal life

In 1981, Davis was inducted into the University of Cincinnati Athletics Hall of Fame.[12] In 1998, he was inducted into the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame. In December 2010,[13] Lewis County High School held a ceremony to retire Davis' number.[4]

Davis is retired and lives in Reading, a suburb of Cincinnati.[2]

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References
  1. Bill Cribbs. "Miscellaneous Lewis County, Kentucky Obituaries". genealogybuff.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  2. "Dawahares / KHSAA Hall of Fame Nomination Form" (PDF). 9 November 2010. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  3. Talley, W.M.; Franke, P. (2005). Lewis County. Arcadia. p. 113. ISBN 9780738518138. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  4. "Lewis County High School honoring former basketball standout Ralph Davis, Jr". maysville-online.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  5. "2010–11 Men's Basketball Media Supplement" (PDF). 15 November 2010. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  6. "Ralph Davis". thedraftreview.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  7. "Ralph Davis NBA Stats | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  8. "1961-62 Chicago Packers Roster and Stats | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  9. The Miami News https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2206&dat=19611120&id=vFRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zT4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=2102,1977704. Retrieved 2015-07-10 – via Google News Archive Search. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. "The Telegraph - Google News Archive Search". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2015-07-10 – via Google News Archive Search.
  11. "apbr.org • View topic – Rescinded Trades". apbr.org. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  12. "GoBEARCATS.COM Ralph Davis Bio – University Of Cincinnati Official Athletic Site University Of Cincinnati". gobearcats.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
  13. "MARK MAYNARD: Vanceburg, UC great's jersey to be retired 12/10/10 – The Independent Online: Local Sports". dailyindependent.com. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
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