King's Speech: Davis declares 'it's my time now'

• ‍Game 1: 'Saturday night slaughter' as KD's Kings fire first shot‍
• Game 2: Cotton game-winner levels series as KD loses his cool‍
• Game 3: 'All love' as KD talks Cotton clash as Kings take Game 3
• Game 4: DJ winds back the clock to keep 36ers alive‍
• Game 5: Kings crowned champions in greatest decider ever

“It’s my time now,” Kendric Davis declared as he accepted the NBL26 Grand Final Series MVP after taking over down the stretch in the fourth quarter and overtime of Game 5 to lead the Kings to the championship in Sydney on Sunday, April 5, 2026.

“Man, I just want to say thank you to all the fans that came out and supported us,” he said.

“Man, I’m lost for words right now.

“Goorj – where George at?

”He gave me an opportunity when everybody tried to bash my name. He said, ‘I believe in you, son. I’m going to make you a better man.’

“Man, X, Delly — we spent time this summer, and they didn’t even talk basketball with me. They just said they believe they can make me a better man. They got my back through it all.

“It didn’t start out pretty, and they stuck with us.

“I can’t be more proud of my teammates, man. We stuck through it. We went through highs and lows.

“We couldn’t have done it without Sydney, the fan support. Y’all the reason we here.

“Look at this stadium, man – it’s beautiful right now.

“Man, I just want to say thank you to everybody — coach and staff, players, my family, friends.

“We did it.”

Kendric Davis Game by Game Breakdown & Averages

+------+--------+-----+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| Game | MIN    | PTS | FG                   | 3PT                  | FT                   | REB | AST | TO  | STL | BLK | PF  | +/- | EFF  |
+------+--------+-----+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| G1   | 29:35  | 25  | 8-16 (50.0%)         | 2-4 (50.0%)          | 7-7 (100%)           | 1   | 7   | 2   | 1   | 0   | 1   | +38 | 24   |
| G2   | 38:11  | 20  | 6-25 (24.0%)         | 2-10 (20.0%)         | 6-6 (100%)           | 4   | 6   | 1   | 2   | 0   | 4   | +4  | 12   |
| G3   | 40:00  | 34  | 11-19 (57.9%)        | 4-8 (50.0%)          | 8-9 (88.9%)          | 2   | 15  | 0   | 0   | 0   | 1   | +13 | 42   |
| G4   | 39:47  | 22  | 8-16 (50.0%)         | 4-9 (44.4%)          | 2-2 (100%)           | 4   | 10  | 4   | 0   | 0   | 3   | -4  | 24   |
| G5   | 44:56  | 35  | 13-29 (44.8%)        | 6-17 (35.3%)         | 3-5 (60.0%)          | 1   | 14  | 4   | 1   | 0   | 4   | +12 | 29   |
+------+--------+-----+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| AVG  | 38:30  | 27.2| 9.2-21.0 (43.8%)     | 3.6-9.6 (37.5%)      | 5.2-5.8 (89.7%)      | 2.4 | 10.4| 2.2 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 2.6 | +12.6| 26.2 |
+------+--------+-----+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+

Davis took home the Larry Sengstock Medal for the Championship Series MVP after finishing Game 5 with 35 points and 14 assists to lead the Kings to a miracle comeback in front of 18,589 people after trailing by as much as six points with just two minutes left in the game.

The Sydney superstar made history, dishing out the most assists in a Championship Series in NBL history.

Only one of Davis's greatest performances of all time could overcome a vintage effort from Cotton, who almost carried the 36ers to a drought-breaking title with 35 points and nine assists.

Davis finished second to six-time MVP Bryce Cotton for the award in 2025-26, the same result as in 2024-25, but he delivered on the biggest stage of all as the Kings trailed by as many as six points with just two minutes to play in regulation.

Before Cotton won his sixth MVP, Davis said during the ceremony in February: “I wanna bust his ass every chance I get … the respect is there. I grew up watching him.

"MVP wasn’t my goal this year; it was being part of a brotherhood, a family, but every time I play him, I’m trying to bust his ass."

Davis certainly didn’t get to do that and barely survived Cotton’s Game 5 heroics.