A Late-Rising Prospect Finds His Spot at UAB

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - May 21, 2026

Taking official visits weren’t part of Kaleb Davis’ process when choosing his college destination. So, the 6-foot-10 center from Memphis will be getting his first taste of life inside the UAB basketball program when he reports to campus in early June.

“I didn't really feel like it was necessary for my process and mostly the timing of it,” said Davis, who signed with the Blazers on Wednesday. “I was late in the recruiting cycle and (summer) workouts and whatnot start soon. So, I decided it would be best for me to do it that way.”

Davis, who played his final high school season in Germantown, Tenn., received plenty of late recruiting attention with much of it coming from  high major programs. His reported suitors included North Carolina State, Texas A&M, Villanova, Seton Hall and Virginia Tech. Most of his recruiting contact from UAB came from head coach Andy Kennedy and assistant coach Rob Williams.

“It was a pretty long process,” Davis said. “I talked to my high school coach, some coaches in the AAU leagues and places I played, as well as me talking to my agent.  I evaluated pros and cons of each place that offered me and wanted me there. And I came to the decision that UAB would be the best place for me.”

Davis becomes the 12th scholarship addition to the program for UAB. He is also the fourth signee in this class who is at least 6-foot-10 and his addition makes the roster the second tallest in the program’s history. UAB’s current roster, which includes the 12 newcomers and returnee Salim London, has an average size of 78.1 inches per player. The tallest roster in the program’s came in 1988-89, which was Kennedy’s sophomore season as a player, had an average height of 78.2 inches per player.

This past season, UAB had one of the nation’s shortest rosters in the country, particularly after 6-foot-10 Joao Das Chagas was lost in the first two weeks of the season following wrist surgery. This year’s front court is slated to include the 6-foot-11 Matt Mbole and the 6-foot-10 trio of Davis, Aleks Alston and Shah Hall. UAB is still waiting to see if 6-foot-8 KyeRon Lindsay-Martin, who averaged 10.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per game last season.

Davis is the lone high school front court player signed by Kennedy and his staff in this recruiting period. Davis was a standout for a Houston High team in Memphis that lost in the Region 8-4A semifinals. He averaged 10 points and 7.6 rebounds per game and shot over 61 percent from the field. Davis, an accomplished shot blocker, was also selected to the all-state team and was the Regional Defensive Player of the Year.

His recruitment didn’t pick up steam until after his senior season. Davis said there were a few reasons for that.

“One of which being is I’m a late bloomer,” Davis said. “I really didn't have my feet under me going into my junior year at a smaller school – Wooddale High School.  I was still getting myself under me and growing a lot as a basketball player and as a young man. Come time for my senior year I wasn't really known going into Houston High School. But I was getting a lot better and developing fast. After my senior year, I chose to play AAU ball with Team Thad. It was a real good decision to play on the EYBL circuit. It accelerated me even further and faster than I ever thought it would. I've been learning and picking up things left and right, like a sponge.”

One aspect of his game he had all along was the shot blocking ability. He is potentially an elite rim protector at the college level.

“It’s a huge part of my game and it did come natural to me,” Davis said. “I did train on it a little bit when I was in ninth and 10th grade, after that it just took off for me. It was easy to watch the ball go up and swat it out of the air.”

The attention that Davis did get before his senior season, while playing AAU with the Arkansas Hawks, came largely because of his defensive ability.

“I have talked to college coaches before and they told me I would go either high major or mid-major through my defense alone and the offense would be a plus the moment it picked up,” Davis said.

Now, Davis is about two weeks short of beginning his college career.

“Just sheer excitement,” Davis said when asked his feeling of entering college. “I’m ready to get out there. I’m ready to soak up everything that Coach AK has to tell me, as well as Coach Rob and all the coaches have to teach me. I’m ready to get out there and make an impact.”