The 'generational star' standing in Adelaide’s way

Now that the two Hungry Jack’s NBL26 Championship Series contenders, Sydney and Adelaide, are locked in, teams are starting to plot their game plans.

A big part of slowing down regular-season champions Sydney is limiting the impact of MVP runner-up Kendric Davis.

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Through his 33 appearances this season, the 26-year-old is averaging 24.8 points, 6.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game.

So impressive has his second season in the NBL been, 1990 NBL MVP Derek Rucker knows how dangerous Davis can be.

“No doubt in any game, any week, any month, Kendric Davis can be the best player in the NBL,” Rucker said on Moments That Mattered, presented by Mitsubishi Motors.

Davis’ explosiveness on the offensive end isn’t lost on the 36ers either, with sharpshooter Dejan Vasiljevic explaining how his side plans to limit the American’s impact across the best-of-five games series.

"Sydney is a great team. They have Kendric Davis who's in my opinion is a generational type player like Bryce Cotton,” Vasiljevic said on Wednesday’s episode of NBL Now.

“We are going to try and make his life a bit tougher.

“He has the ball the majority of the time, and if we can make his life tough, I think we'll have a really good chance.”

The battle between Davis and Cotton will be one of the must-watch storylines of the Championship Series, with just two votes separating the pair in MVP voting.

Davis already set the scene for fascinating matchup following a highly-debated NBL awards night.

"Just win something that they can’t vote on … just win a championship, that’s all that matters," the Kings' star said last month.

The highly-anticipated Championships Series tips off at Qudos Bank Arena on Saturday at 7pm AEDT, live on ESPN and 10 Drama.