Deyonta Davis had a successful freshman season at Michigan State, averaging 7.5 points in 18.6 minutes per game. But his impact went beyond the box score. His role continuously grew throughout the season as he grew more comfortable at the college level as an athletic rim protector.

Click through the slides for Davis' strengths, weaknesses, and his fit on the Celtics.

Davis is a paint patroller that swats shots into the seats because of his athleticism and long 7-foot-3 wingspan. He’s also nimble enough to switch onto other positions, giving him additional versatility.

The Michigan State freshman is reliable on offense, unsurprising for a player learning under Tom Izzo. He doesn’t make many mistakes on offense (though his screening must improve) and he’s a decent passer. As a scorer he realistically should develop into a rim runner that sets screens and sprints to the rim. He has good hands and shouldn’t have issues finishing athletically at the rim.

Davis is a remarkable defensive prospect except for one major flaw: he’s a low talker. Rim protectors need to communicate and Davis will be one of the quietest players in the locker room. It’s important to signal assignments and rotations, but Davis presently relies on his pure athleticism and not his voice to make an impact.

Despite shooting just 60.5 percent from the free throw line, Davis has solid jumper mechanics. If he makes a minor alteration to his form he could be reliable from mid-range. For what it’s worth, Davis claimed at the NBA Combine that he’s already extended his range to the NBA three. Don’t take his word for it though.

Davis is tremendous fit for the Celtics. Brad Stevens has said numerous times that his preferred style of offense involves four shooters surrounding one rim running big. Davis perfectly fits that description with his ability to finish athletically at the rim. Factor in his reliable passing ability and there's plenty to like about Davis as a role player on offense.

Defensively, the Celtics love to switch screens, which is an attribute Davis could someday have. Jordan Mickey also fits a similar profile, but it doesn’t hurt to have another guy on the roster capable of making that type of defensive impact.

Davis will be selected in the mid-late lottery to the late teens. The Celtics are in a good position to draft him if he’s on the board with the No. 16 pick. If they don’t want to risk losing him, then they could possibly package some picks together to slide into the lottery.

Kevin O’Connor can be followed on Twitter @KevinOConnorNBA.

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