By Mike Rose | Sports Editor
David Grady III, or DG3, as he’s known by most, has always been striving for greatness on the basketball court. Despite taking an unconventional path, Grady has left his mark everywhere his journey has taken him.
Grady was recruited to Brockport directly out of high school, but he opted to take a different path initially. He committed to Division II Queens College near his home- town of Brooklyn for his first two seasons. Grady said it took a lot of tough conversations to land on his decision.
“I go to my dad for everything. So, we had the con- versation of, you could go to Brockport and go upstate and play there but the problem was finances, especially coming out of high school. Also, I was stuck on [getting] a scholarship, stuck on playing that level of basketball. The coaches [at Brockport] said ‘we want you to go get the best opportunity you can.’”
Despite not landing the initial commitment, Brockport head coach Greg Dunne never forgot about Grady. Shortly before COVID-19 shut down the sports world, Dunne called Grady to let him know there was still a place for him at Brockport.
“They actually called me during the championship dinner,” Grady said. “They said to me ‘hey if you want it, we got the answer.’ That really stuck with me. Then COVID-19 happened and that gave me a chance to really look at my opportunities and it seemed at Queens it just wasn’t work- ing for me. The fact that these guys still had so much love for me, it was kind of a no brainer. It was just a meant to happen kind of thing. The chips fell where they needed to, and the rest is history.”
Grady would remain at Queens during a COVID-19 shortened next season but that phone call from a year prior, and what he called ‘his favorite visit ever’ all the way back in 2018, were enough to eventually convince him to make the move up to Brockport for the 2021-22 season.
In his two seasons as a Golden Eagle, Grady has left a legacy to be proud of. He amassed 618 points, 349 rebounds and 123 blocks. To cap off his final season, Grady earned SUNYAC Defensive Player of the Year and Second Team All-SUNYAC honors as Brockport advanced all the way to the conference championship game. He says he’s grown as much off the court as he has on it during his time at Brockport.
“I came in junior year and kind of played it mellow, just went along with everything,” Grady said. “Then I made the jump this year to being a leader and just improving all aspects of my game. Not even as much playing, but being vocal and being a leader defensively. I think that was the biggest reflection I had is how much I’ve grown. I think these two years have molded me to be able to adapt to any situation. I think he (Dunne) taught me how to play under a coach that demands high expectations. I think that’s just brought a lot of growth to me.”
As he embarks on his next chapter, Grady has signed with an agent and has begun exploring opportunities to play professionally overseas. At 6’5, Grady knows he will be too undersized to play inside like he did in college. So, after attempting just 87 three-pointers in his collegiate career, and only 13 in his last two seasons, he realizes it’s going to take a lot of long days in the gym to make this transition work.
“You’re going to see a different David Grady than you saw at Brockport,” Grady said. “I’ll have to evolve my game to fit my size to where I want to play at. So, just finding the best country and best team that I can fit with and still enjoying the game. I just felt once the year ended, I’m not ready to be done so it’s a whole new chapter of my life.”
While long odds may be facing him as he heads into his next chapter, but if Grady has proven anything, it’s that he always finds a way to make his mark.
