Wes Davis grew up in Tacoma, Washington. During high school, he had traveled with a group of students to England for a mission trip. While there, he connected with one of the younger kids.
“That’s when I realized it doesn’t matter what you make money-wise. You’re never going to have something that gives you any more reward than loving and working with kids,” Davis shared. The desire to work with youth is a large part of why he enrolled at Northwest. Even though he loved basketball, his passion to help others was becoming the focus of his time and energy.
However, shortly after arriving at Northwest, Davis connected with Coach Doug Filan and the next four years were nothing short of history making. While on a road trip near Walla Walla, the team was involved in a near-fatal car accident which sent most of the team to the hospital and caused the starting point guard to miss the rest of the season. Despite the adversity, the team rallied to take 2nd Place at the NCCAA National Championships. The next season, Davis led the team to win it all!
He became Northwest’s first freshman 1st Team All-American and was a repeat selection all four years. He still holds the #1 record in career assists (832), season assists, career rebounds (972), and season rebounds. Davis was a tall point guard at 6’6” which is very uncommon even by today's standards. He averaged 14.2 points and 11 rebounds per game. His teammates knew that if they could get open, Davis would get them the ball because his style of on-the-court leadership was to always put the team first. Davis was a Scholar-Athlete (1991-1993) and was awarded All-Tournament MVP (1992) and All-Tournament Team (1990-1992).
“Davis was a very versatile player” says LeRoy Johnson. “He personified what that team was all about: to never give in and never give up.”
Davis was ASB President and a strong leader both on and off the court. He received the 1992 Pete Maravich Award which is presented to the outstanding NCCAA Division II men’s basketball player in the nation and must be an outstanding Christian basketball player each year to qualify. That athlete must possess a vital Christian testimony on and off the court and exhibit outstanding leadership qualities. Davis’ jersey (31) is one of only two jerseys that have been retired in Northwest University history.
Today he is the Lead Pastor at Newlife Church in Silverdale, Wash., where he lives with his wife, Kari, and three children—Kali, Austin, and Klara.
