South Christian’s 6-foot-8 lefty intrigues basketball and baseball coaches

South Christian’s Davis Kemper puts up a shot against Holland Christian on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. He had seven blocked shots in the game. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Davis Kemper was the last player in the gym on Friday night.

His South Christian basketball teammates had already changed and filed out of the locker room after beating Pewamo-Wesphalia 47-34 at the Cornerstone Holiday Tournament.

But Kemper, a 6-foot-8, 215-pound senior, was still wearing his jersey, while chatting with a line of college coaches who came to see him play.

“It feels good,” Kemper said. “I really appreciate all the college coaches taking time to come watch me play. They’ve given me some really good feedback.”

South Christian coach Taylor Johnson said as many as 10 coaches planned to watch Kemper play on Friday. 

The big lefty struggled on offense against Pewamo-Westphalia, but still finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

“The sky’s the limit for a kid like that,” Johnson said. “He’s tall and skilled. They’re so hard to find. He’s a five-tool player. He can pass, he can block shots, rebound, score and he can dribble. There’s not many 6-8 kids who can do that. Once he keeps playing and gets more comfortable, I think he will get even better.”

South Christian’s Davis Kemper talks to coach Taylor Johnson during a game against Pewamo-Westphalia at the Cornerstone Holiday Tournament on Friday, Dec. 27, 2024. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).

Kemper wasn’t really on anyone’s radar until this season. 

But he’s put up some strong numbers that are hard to ignore.

In the season opener against Grand Rapids Christian, Kemper had 11 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots. The next game, against Holland Christian, he had 6 points, 6 rebounds and a stunning 7 blocked shots. And against Byron Center, he did nothing on offense in the first half and then he put on a show. Kemper drained six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points.

So he’s been intriguing for college coaches.

“I feel like I still have a lot of room to grow in different areas,” Kemper said. “This past fall is the only (basketball) training that I did. I don’t play AAU. I almost regret not playing AAU.”

That’s because his focus had been only on baseball.

It’s hard to pass up a 6-foot-8 left-handed pitcher. 

“The past two years, baseball is what I’ve focused on,” said Kemper, who played with the Cage 52 Bananas. “This summer, that’s all I did was play travel baseball.”

Davis Kemper pitches against Grand Rapids Catholic Central during a baseball game on May 13, 2024. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).

So which sport does he want to play in college?

“I’ve talked to Grand Valley and Michigan State this summer,” Kemper said of baseball. “And Cornerstone and Calvin said they’d be ok with me playing both sports. But I’m still not sure If I want to play both sports in college. I don’t know if that’s the road that I want to take. I feel like I’d like to focus on one sport.”

Kemper, the son of Hunter and Valerie Kemper, moved to Byron Center from Colorado Springs, Colo., before his freshman year.

“My mom grew up in Byron Center,” he said. “She went to South Christian. And my grandparents and my cousins live here. So we decided to make the transition because of South and family.”

On the basketball court, Kemper said he’s got a lot to work on, but he’s excited to see how good he can be.

“This season I’ve been able to step it up a little bit, but I’ve got a lot of room to grow,” he said.

Carson Vis, a South Christian senior, has played with Kemper for the past three years on varsity and he’s seen a lot of progress lately.

“He’s taken a big step from last year, definitely,” Vis said. “He has become more skilled and better around the basket. He can shoot as well, which makes him hard to guard. He also can block shots, which helps us out a lot on defense.”

Johnson said Kemper will only get better.

“He’s come a long way,” Johnson said. “He’s still new to the game. He’s never played AAU. He’s never played basketball full time in a year. He’s really growing. This fall is the first time that he really took the offseason pretty serious. He’s a baseball prospect as well, so I think he’s having fun with this.”

South Christian’s Davis Kemper towers over his defender during a game against Pewamo-Westphalia at the Cornerstone Holiday Tournament on Friday, Dec. 27, 2024. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).