TKR 2009 Recruit Breakdown: Brandon Davies

Former Zag prospect and current Oregon State commit Joe Burton is the tenth ranked center in the West for 2009 as ranked by Scout.com. Brandon Davies is ranked ahead of him at ninth. For quite some time Burton was big on the Zags radar and then suddenly he disappeared and committed to a team that has been nothing but terrible in recent years. It looks like we finally figured out why our recruitment of Joe Burton cooled and that reason is Brandon Davies. The big man from Provo, Utah has burst on the scene in a big way.

Measurements: 6'9'', 215 lbs

Scholarship Offers and Visits: Along with an offer from Gonzaga, Davies has a number of other scholarship offers. He has been offered by BYU, Utah, Utah State, Cal, and Arizona. Davies has already visited Cal and Utah State. He will be visiting Gonzaga the weekend of September 26th. He also plans on visiting BYU in a few weeks.

Rankings: Rivals- 3 Star
Scout- 4 Star
Scouts Inc- Rated a 68

Teams: Davies plays high school basketball for Provo High School and travels during the summer time with Utah Pump N Run

Quotable: "If Davies was playing at Westchester in Los Angeles, he'd be ranked as one of the top players in the country." a scout said to Scout.com's Greg Hicks.

Strengths: Rarely do you see a player burst on the scene as quickly as Brandon Davies has. In April 2008, Scouts Inc. said that Davies would be a nice mid-major player. Over the summer he proved that he can excel at the major level if he chooses to. The main reason for his jump in recruiting can be attributed to his offensive skill set. Davies is very skilled in the post and rarely loses his post position. He has very soft hands and is able to enforce his will in the paint as he possesses a very fluid hook shot. Usually when players are excellent with their back to the basket they tend to be a little more suspect with their face up game. This is not the case with Brandon Davies as he is a very versatile big man. He has the ability to penetrate from the wing and can dribble without the crowd having to hold their breath. One of my favorite things about him is that he is confident that he can finish around the basket with both hands, something rare among high school players. Everything related to fundamentals Davies does well. He possesses a great feel for the game of basketball and has great footwork. He definitely feels like a player that can have an instant impact if he does in fact become a Zag.

Room for Improvement: Brandon Davies recently turned 17 years of age which means two things. Of course he has some weaknesses in his game but because of his age, he has plenty of time to correct his flaws. Brandon Davies will never wow you with superb athleticism. By no means is Davies a slouch; he is a meticulous student of the game who uses fundamentals to excel. Davies will also have to improve his speed and quickness if he wants to play at a high level especially if he plays at Gonzaga or in the PAC-10. He will face post players much quicker than he is and will have to increase his lateral speed. I have little question that he will be able to do this. At 215 pounds he still has some growing to do and once he fills in to his body he will become even more dominant. To be honest, there are only a few glaring weaknesses about Mr. Davies. An interesting side note that has no relation to basketball is his faith. Davies is a Mormon and he has the option to serve on a two year mission if he chooses to. Davies will not have to go on this mission until his second year of college is complete but the mission is definitely something that will have to be addressed.

Recruiting Forecast: Davies seems to be completely open at this point. Arizona has recently came into play which means that Lute Olsen does not believe Davies will be a one and done player. Many high school players from Utah choose to stay close to home especially if they are in the Mormon faith. For this reason it seems that the Utah schools have an advantage but Davies is visiting soon and I have full confidence that Few and the staff will give him nothing but the star treatment. There are a whole bunch of twists and turns with Brandon Davies but he is a very exciting prospect and whoever gets him will be very lucky.