San Diego State basketball will need Latrell Davis to find his footing

The regular season has not yet begun, but SDSU fans are starting to get concerned about guard Latrell Davis

This past offseason, San Diego State redshirt-junior guard Latrell Davis announced his return to The Mesa alongside Elzie Harrington, Tae Simmons, and Thokbor Majak. This sparked excitement across campus and in San Diego, as three young, crucial members of the squad had a chance to be the talk of the town.

When discussing the former San Jose State guard, head coach Brian Dutcher made headlines with his take on Davis. He called him arguably the best player on the team last season, even though he sat out the year.

That statement excited fans. It’s also fair to say that Dutcher would not give Davis that high of praise if he didn’t mean it.

With the season right around the corner, fans have had chances to see Davis and the new-look Aztecs play against two Preseason AP Top 25 programs, No. 5 Arizona and No. 21 USC.

The British hooper had a night to forget against Arizona, missing every shot he took and turning the ball over once, but he still managed three assists and two rebounds.

“Latrell was 0-for-8, but we’ve seen him not miss a shot in practice, so I don’t worry about that. I just think he’ll get going eventually here as he plays a little bit after missing a month with that shoulder,” Dutcher said after the Arizona loss.

Against the Trojans, Davis improved in every aspect; however, he did not quite set the tone offensively — something he was hyped up to do.

His 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including 1-of-1 from three-point range, were productive. Calling that performance bad would be unfair, especially against a strong opponent … though I was not at Viejas Arena for the exhibition.

“I felt like we played more physical against Arizona,” Davis said after the USC contest. “[USC] is a physical team, but I do feel like Arizona is more physical than them. I just feel like we didn’t pay attention to detail in the game plan, like going under on certain shooters that we shouldn’t.”

“We let people get hot in the rhythm, so when they had momentum, it was kind of hard to stop. I don’t necessarily feel like we took a step back [in our play]. I just felt like we didn’t pay attention to full detail. So, when people got hot, it’s hard to stop momentum. We had to kill it one way or another. We came out in the second half and did that. So, the fact that we can go down like that and then come out of the locker room and turn that around is a good sign.”

Scoring is what makes Latrell Davis who he is. He averaged 11.1 points during his sophomore season on 45.3% shooting. Against San Diego State as a member of San Jose State, Davis combined to score 44 points on two occasions. He scored 23 points at Viejas Arena and then dropped 21 at home against the Aztecs during the 2024-25 season.

Remember, Davis erupted for 57 points in the Swish League Showcase during the summer. We all know he can score, but the redshirt-guard must prove that he can shake off the pressure and show up when he is needed most. Seeing him improve after an off night is already great to see ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.

Davis can score off the dribble, shoot comfortably from the catch-and-shoot position, and attack the rim and finish through contact. There is no weak part of his offensive game. His teammates will feed him every night, and he will take matters into his own hands.

LATRELL DAVIS AND 1️⃣

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— San Jose State Men’s Basketball (@SanJoseStateMBB) February 12, 2025

This is the type of player that Dutcher needs on a nightly basis. Dutcher does not want to look back and regret his praise. At the same time, Davis needs to shake off the gap year and transform into the scoring machine we keep hearing that he is.

Chris Spiering

Chris is a graduate of the University of San Diego. He is the former Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris has covered the San Diego Loyal, and now covers San Diego State Men’s Basketball. He also contributes regularly about the Padres. Chris is an athlete and is a huge fan of San Diego sports.