When South Carolina standout guard, Kaela Davis, heard her name called as the
10th pick in the 2017 WNBA draft, one of the first people to congratulate her
was someone who knows the feeling and Kaela all too well.
Twenty-seven years earlier, Davis’ father, Antonio, saw his own basketball
dreams become a reality in the same city. Antonio was selected 45th overall by
the Indiana Pacers in the 1990 NBA draft. While Kaela didn’t have to wait quite
as long to hear her name be called, having a father who played in the NBA as a
mentor and supporter is something that neither take for granted.
“It means everything,” Kaela responded when asked about what it means to
continue the professional basketball legacy her father started all those years
ago, and continued for 13 seasons with four different NBA franchises. “To have a
legacy going on, it means a lot to me to carry the Davis name and extend it a
little bit.”
Like his daughter, Antonio understood the importance of the moment Kaela heard
her name called.
“It’s been a long road, from the SEC tournament to the NCAA tournament where
they when the championship and now to turn around and here we are seeing her get
drafted,” he told WNBA.com. “It’s just so exciting as a family and I couldn’t be
prouder of my daughter. I knew this was huge for her and something she really
wanted, I couldn’t be happier to see her dreams come true.”
What a moment for the Davis family!
No. 10 pick @KaelaD3 & her proud father, @nba vet @Espnantoniod #WDraft17 #ThisIsWhyWePlay pic.twitter.com/JSUkvo67fW
— WNBA (@WNBA) April 14, 2017
For Kaela, this dream didn’t truly come to fruition until Thursday night at
Samsung 837 butAntonio seemed to know that this all very possible for her from a
young age.
“There was one game really early in Kaela’s career where she made a mistake and
coach pulled her out of the game and she started crying,” Antonio told WNBA.com.
“She then went back in later in the game and hit the winning bucket. At that
point in time I knew there was something in her, that competitiveness and drive,
that was going to propel her very far.”
That competitiveness and drive Antonio saw from Kaela at an early age only
intensified as she got older. She ascended to the top ranked guard in the
country in her 2013 high school class, earned All-ACC honors in her first two
years at Georgia Tech. That drive was the catalyst behind her stellar junior
season at South Carolina where she played a pivotal role in the Gamecocks
winning their first National Championship in school history.
That same mentality has her poised to start what looks to be a promising career
with fellow USC backcourt running mate Allisha Gray and proven WNBA star Skylar
Diggins in Dallas.
But Dallas can wait because Thursday was simply about celebrating how far she’s
come and the monumental feat of simply being selected to play in the WNBA, let
alone as the 10th overall pick. Luckily, in the midst of all the hugs, smiles
and kisses there’s a father who has done all of this before and knows what lies
ahead for Kaela.
“I don’t even think she really understands what’s going on right now,” Antonio
said with a smile. “I think her head is just spinning and rightfully so, a week
ago we weren’t sure what she was going to be doing, but here we are and now she
has to grow up. Like I told her it’s different when you’re a professional it’s
your life, it’s what you do. Now you really have to take care of the little
things like eating right, working out and getting to the gym. But, I think she’s
ready.”
Proud father!@ESPNAntonioD reacts to his daughter, @KaelaD3, getting picked 10th by the @DallasWings #WDraft17 pic.twitter.com/3ZyZyPNF3Y
— WNBA (@WNBA) April 14, 2017
Now, basketball is her career. He explained that a big part of being a
professional is keeping your body in peak performance shape. But, not to worry,
he may have his daughter covered when it comes to that as well.
“I asked her if she would hire me as her personal trainer,” Davis said. “I told
her that I could also be her post coach, I think I’m pretty good at it, she said
I’ll consider it.”
While it’s still up in the air whether Kaela will bring her father along to
Dallas to make sure she’s getting her necessary workouts in, there’s no doubt
that Antonio will be supporting Kaela every step of the way as she embarks on
her WNBA journey.
The old adage may typically read “like father, like son,” but in the case of the
Davis family, “like father, like daughter” has never been more true.
