Former Davidson star Kellan Grady transferring to SEC basketball powerhouse
Davidson star Kellan Grady will spend his final season of college eligibility at Kentucky, the school announced Monday.
Grady, one of college basketball’s better shooter-scorers, will enter Kentucky as a grad transfer, with the NCAA allowing a fifth season of eligibility due to the pandemic. Grady averaged 17.4 points per game over his four Davidson seasons.
Grady is scheduled to graduate from Davidson this spring, and the college doesn’t have graduate programs. Grady entered the NCAA transfer portal March 22.
Davidson coach Bob McKillop told The Observer on Monday that he sees Grady as a great fit at Kentucky because both his skills and his personality make him adaptive.
“He’s very structured, he’s got a great work ethic. He’s got all the ingredients,” said McKillop of Grady, who scored 2,000 points over his Davidson career.
What makes Grady particularly appealing is his career 37% 3-point accuracy.
“That’s why he’s positioned himself so well toward a professional career,” McKillop said. “Three-point shooting is so valued both in college basketball and the NBA.”
When Grady entered the transfer portal, McKillop said Grady wanted to keep all his options open: Entering the NBA draft, playing professionally overseas or playing another season of college basketball.
Kentucky coach John Calipari expressed interest quickly after Grady entered the transfer portal. National power Kentucky went 9-16 last season, its first losing record since going 13-19 in 1988-89. Three underclassmen off that Kentucky team have already indicated an intention to turn pro.
Calipari has already seen Grady play up-close from when Davidson matched up with Kentucky in the first round of the 2018 NCAA tournament. Kentucky beat Davidson 78-73 in Boise, Idaho. Grady didn’t shoot well in that game (4 of 14 from the field), but he finished with 16 points thanks to eight trips to the foul line.
This story was originally published March 29, 2021 at 5:13 PM.
