The Davis surname has held significance in Chapel Hill for a long time.
Walter “Sweet D” Davis starred at North Carolina from 1973 to 1977 before beginning an illustrious NBA career that saw him selected to the NBA All-Star team six times. His nephew Hubert Davis is one of the most prominent figures in the Triangle after leading the Tar Heels to a national runner-up finish in April.
But 20-year-old Elijah — representing the next generation with Davis stitched across his back — isn’t interested in letting the pressure get to him.
Elijah has played basketball in the Triangle for his entire life. He first attended Trinity School of Durham and Chapel Hill before settling in at Jordan High School. The connections to NBA stars don’t stop at Hubert and Walter — NBA champion, four-time All-Star and UNC alumnus Rasheed Wallace coached Davis with the Falcons for a season.
“That name carries a lot of responsibility, that’s something our family takes a lot of pride in,” Elijah said. “But even though it might be a little bit well-known around here, we always need to treat people the right way, always do the right thing, and give the glory to God. That’s the three main things we do.”
That humility is a bigger part of being a Davis than anything on the hardwood. Throughout his youth basketball career, Elijah was almost always able to pick out his father in the bleachers at basketball games, but Hubert made sure no one else would.
“He sits top corner, hidden away, glasses on, making sure no one really sees him,” Elijah shared. “Every game, I know to look up to the corners and that’s where he is. I look up at him and he’ll give me a thumbs up or he’ll give me a little ‘let’s get going.’ That’s all he does. He doesn’t wanna bring any attention to himself. He wants to make sure that if I play well, I get all the attention. I think that can attest to what kind of man he is.”
Though it may puzzle some, Elijah knew throughout the recruitment process that he wasn’t committed to attending UNC. The NCAA Division III Lynchburg Hornets landed his commitment in October 2020, and he’ll begin his sophomore campaign in the fall. His first season didn’t go exactly to plan, averaging only 2.1 points per game, but he said he’s enamored with the program and the staff.
“Coach [Hilliary] Scott really preaches making sure that we’re all good,” he said with a smile. “It’s not just basketball, he teaches life lessons.”
Just like Coach Scott, the elder Davis emphasizes activity in the classroom and community as being essential to a well-rounded athlete and man.
“While he’s in Lynchburg, I know he’s around good people like his coaching staff and teammates,” Davis said. “I’ve always wanted my kids to have the same college experience I did: surrounded by great people. That’s what Elijah has and it brings me great peace.”
Hubert Davis owns one of the most coveted jobs in basketball, but the last thing he wants is for it to take over his life. He is very open about losing his mother in high school and takes the tragic loss of life as motivation to be as present as possible for his own children.
“I love my job, and it’s something I want to do well — but it takes a back seat to my faith and my family,” Davis said. “As a father, it’s very important for me to be present, to care for them, love them and support them because I want to be in their lives and be around.”
There’s no better proof of Hubert’s love for his son than his familiarity with the 125-mile stretch between Chapel Hill and Lynchburg.
“I thought it would be more difficult for his mom, but him leaving home was more difficult for me,” Davis said. “His personality was around our house for 18 years and then suddenly it’s gone and I’m left like, ‘Where’s Elijah?’”
Image courtesy of Davis family.
Though Coach Davis’ understandably busy schedule during basketball season only allowed him to see two of Elijah’s freshman year games, every time he had an off day, he drove up to Lynchburg.
“I’d take him out to lunch or dinner, stay the night, drop him off in the morning and drive back to class,” Davis said. “I just needed to hug him and be around him.”
Elijah recalled one specific instance of a visit from his father during a low point in his season. The eight previous games had seen him record a total of four minutes on the hardwood, and he hadn’t recorded a field goal since November, three months earlier.
“I wasn’t playing a lot, or not at all. I was on the bench,” Davis said. “I hadn’t been in the game in about a month and it was really difficult for me.”
The father-son meal came at a dip in the Tar Heels’ season as well. UNC had suffered a 22-point drubbing at Wake Forest just days after dropping a road game to Miami by a margin of 28. The Heels stood at 4-3 in an unusually weak Atlantic Coast Conference and 12-6 overall. There were some Carolina fans ready to blow the whistle on Hubert Davis’ inaugural season.
“I remember being at dinner with my dad and he looked at me and said, ‘If you’re going to fight, I’m going to fight,’” Elijah said. “I remember the whole conversation, I kind of just gave him a nod, and it was crazy how the season started turning around.
“It gives me chills just thinking about it,” he continued. “All of a sudden, I started getting playing time and hit some big-time shots in big-time games.”
The Heels won six of their next seven games and twelve of fourteen, losing only three of their remaining conference games after dropping three of six to begin the ACC season. Rather than the season going down the drain, UNC earned a berth to the NCAA tournament just months later as an eight seed. It capped off its Cinderella run with the instant-classic Final Four victory that ended Kyrzyzewski’s career before falling just short of Bill Self’s Kansas in the national championship game.
Elijah’s progress was more incremental, but also fulfilling. The rest of the season saw Davis appear in more games than he didn’t, having cracked the rotation and seeing the floor in five of the last six games. He recorded eight points in ten minutes in a February 12 clash with Washington and Lee where he shot 2-4 from beyond the arc, and later finished the season with 17 minutes and a three-pointer versus Virginia Wesleyan.
“When — I always say when all of us get knocked down, you have the choice to either stay down, whine and complain and point fingers, or you can get back up,” Hubert said. “[Elijah] won because he kept getting back up and persevering. It was a year of perseverance and resilience for him.”
Elijah’s response when asked if he was proud of his dad’s finish to the season?
“That’s my guy.”
Elijah and Hubert Davis smile for the camera at 97.9 The Hill
Featured photo via Erin Farina/LynchburgSports.com
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