HE IS ONE OF the NBA’s most electrifying athletes.

He is a loving, dedicated parent.

He is a community service leader.

He is Ricky Davis, and he is getting better all the time.

"I would say that he has matured," Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor told the St. Paul Pioneer Press in January 2006, when Ricky arrived in a mid-season trade. He has been impressing people ever since, from management to his teammates.

"He goes to the basket hard, has attitude, yeah,” said former teammate Kevin Garnett, the Boston Celtics' all-star forward. “I've always enjoyed somebody who plays with a lot of energy ... Some nights you need someone to light that ignition."

Kevin McHale, Minnesota’s vice president of basketball operations, agreed.

"Ricky's got an innate toughness about him that everybody sees every day," he said. "He's kind of a street fighter. Those are the types of guys you like having around."

A JOURNEY STARTS

Born in Las Vegas, Nevada, on September 23rd, 1979, Tyree Ricardo Davis IV lived in Chicago before his parents decided to move the family to the calmer environs of Davenport, Iowa. He was anything but a basketball prodigy in the beginning.

As he told the Minneapolis Star Tribune in January 2006:

"I started playing ball when I was in seventh, and I was terrible. Terrible," Davis said. "I had ... nothing. I was just out there playing.”

A year later, things changed.

That year, Davis dunked in a game for the first time, earning a mention the next morning over the school's P.A. system. Legend has it…it was the first dunk in school history.

By ninth grade, Davis was well on his way to his current 6-7 and his talents were so evident that he was invited to play on Davenport North's varsity. In his sophomore year, he committed to play at Iowa and in 1997-98, he did just that. Davis averaged 15 points and 4.8 assists for the Hawkeyes, earning honorable mention all-Big Ten status.

WELCOME TO THE SHOW

Then 18 year-old Ricky was selected 21st in the 1998 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets, chosen after Michael Olowokandi, Jason Williams, Michael Doleac, Keon Clark, Bryce Drew, and Pat Garrity, among others. He arrived somewhat under the radar, though in the weeks before the draft, scouts were becoming increasingly aware of his explosive talents.

As USA Today reported in March of that year:

Two NBA scouts happened to be chatting when a young man caught their attention with a soaring tomahawk dunk on the gym floor.

"Woooo! Who's that?" they asked in unison, glancing quickly at their roster sheets.

"That's Ricky Davis of Iowa," answered former Michigan coach Steve Fisher, one of the faces in the crowd at the 1998 NBA pre-draft camp. "He's very athletic."

That exchange took place after Davis' first dunk of the game Wednesday. Then came another dunk, and another, and yet another -- all just as impressive as the first.

Davis, a 6-foot-5 guard, finished with four eye-catching dunks and 16 points in his team's 91-72 win.

Not bad for an 18-year-old kid.

Ricky’s early years in the league were uneventful. After two years learning and observing on the Charlotte bench, he was traded to the Miami Heat, but broke his foot after seven games, and was out for the remainder of the year.

The following season, 2001-2002, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and for the first time, Ricky was playing consistently, averaging 11.7 points in nearly 24 minutes per game. In 2002-2003 he became a starter, and in short order, the NBA and its fans met a fiery competitor with a penchant for highlight-reel dunks. Ricky’s only misstep that season: the misguided pursuit of a triple-double during a game in March, which he reflects back on now as a regrettable, youthful error.

"That was a big mistake to make when you're young and dumb,” said Ricky. “You sit back and you can laugh at that now."

FAN AND TEAM FAVORITE

Midway through the 2003-2004 season, Ricky was traded to the Boston Celtics, and by 2005, he had found his role as one the NBA’s most prolific sixth men.

Boston coach Glenn “Doc” Rivers was energized by having a player of Ricky’s talent coming off the bench. He explained to USA Today in 2005:

"He's a guy you can run plays for, but he can also score just on movement. That's big in the postseason. In the playoffs, the more you zero in on a guy, you take away his options. But you can't take away movement. Having an ace on the bench, if you start off slow, you still have somewhere to go. That makes your team better and more dangerous."

He also earned the respect of former Boston coach and player Tommy Heinsohn, now the Celtics’ TV analyst:

"He's a player...who has grown into the game of basketball…He's such a good player with so many skills. He's mastered a lot of skills that people don't give him credit for. He certainly makes an impact on the game.”

Ricky also made an impact off the court in Boston, where Get Buckets (as Ricky was nicknamed for his potent scoring ability) started the Get Buckets Brigade, purchasing season tickets and awarding them to fans. It was one of the many community-oriented activities Ricky had undertaken since entering the league – the kind of projects he continues to pursue through the Ricky Davis Foundation.

"Just growing up in the neighborhoods, being unfortunate and not being able to see certain stuff, see certain people until you finally get to college, it's a great feeling to finally be able to give back to certain people, feed them, and make them happy," Davis explained to the Associated Press.

Halfway through the 2005-2006 season, Ricky was traded to Minnesota, where he continued to make a name for himself on and off the court.

Ricky with son Tyree.

Though the Timberwolves finished a disappointing 32-50 this past year, Ricky put up solid numbers, averaging 17 points, 4.8 assists, four rebounds and a steal per game.

He continued to pursue community activities with a passion, highlighted this past year by Thanksgiving and Easter events that he organized and sponsored.

THE PRESENT

In July of 2008, Ricky signed onto be a swingman for the Los Angeles Clippers.

Along with the new move, Ricky decided a new look was appropriate, and he exchanged his trademark braids for a clean-cut look for the 2008-2009 season.

The future is looking bright for Ricky, and his boys Tyree and Terez.

He is Ricky Davis, and he is getting better all the time.