The Davis brothers have always made sure to stick together. At first, it was out of necessity, as Kelvin, Keshawn and Keon were at home, or eventually at the boxing gym together, while their mother worked to support their family. As time went on and all three brothers became adults, life gave them the opportunity to drift apart if they wanted to, but instead they adhered to their childhood dream of Davis Brothers Enterprises—DB3 for short—with all three of them pursuing professional boxing.

It would have been easiest for the youngest, Keon, to stray from the plan. During a time when Keshawn was a member of the US national amateur team and Kelvin was already pursuing a gig as an electrician, Keon spent a lot of time by himself. While his siblings had been fostered in a house with ten people for three bedrooms, rotating between couches and floors, Keon eventually found himself with time and space.

“Me being alone for those years, I just really had to figure out who Keon was,” the welterweight prospect told The Ring. “You know, if I really wanted to box, just figure things out on my own type of thing. During that time, I was around Shakur Stevenson a whole lot. You know, it was hard, but I got through it.”

At 6’3” with a frame that could make 154 pounds, Keon had the raw physical gifts that any boxing trainer, manager or promoter would drool over. Keshawn revealed in an interview with ESPN’s Mark Kriegel last year that he’d always told Keon that he had the potential to be the best fighter out of the three. By 2019, Keon was a staple in the final rounds of US national tournaments and a travelling member of the national team. But when injury struck that sent him under the knife, he started to not believe what he’d been told, and what the brothers had told themselves for years. While he was on the couch in a sling linked up to a BREG cold therapy machine, his brothers were thinking about when their pro debuts might be.

Kelvin entered the paid ranks at the end of 2020, and Keyshawn soon entered in early 2021 as he awaited his eventual Olympic appearance. Keon, who spent all that time by himself figuring out who he was, was at a crossroads in his life where at least a temporary answer to that question was necessary.

“It was after I kinda had fell off of boxing after my arm surgery, I started having doubts,” said Davis, who nearly followed older brother Kelvin, who spent time as an electrician before putting the gloves back on. “I quit for like a year, and I got a regular job. I was working a regular job, in like a warehouse, at a pest control place. When I was working those jobs and stuff, I started realizing this is not for me. You know, I got a lot of skills in boxing, and I know I can take stuff to the next level. And that was when my brothers had just turned pro, and I'm seeing them doing their pro thing and seeing how it's going for them. I just told them like, 'nah', I'm going to get back into boxing and we're going to really take this thing over.”

After becoming Olympic Trials champion, Keon joined his brothers in the pros on November 8 of last year, as the three of them fought, and won, on the same card in their hometown of Norfolk, VA. On Friday, Keon will once again join Keshawn on the same card as his older brother faces Denys Berinchyk for the WBO world lightweight title.

At the end of the day, there has always been a hereditary pull to be there for one another, especially in the biggest moments—be it a second pro fight or a world title fight.

“When you grow up together, you know, families in the same house, some families grow apart. But me and my brothers, we're doing the same thing, we're all in the same sport. Even when Kelvin wasn't boxing, he would still come to our fights and tournaments, just because he knows how it it is to feel your family outside that ring,” said Davis, who will face Ira Johnson in a scheduled four-rounder.

It’s been a busy period for the Davis crew and their broader circle, which includes the aforementioned Stevenson who prepares for his February 22 bout against Floyd Schofield (whom Keon defeated in the amateurs), and Terence Crawford, who looks towards an eventual Riyadh Season showdown with Canelo Alvarez.

The attention at the moment isn’t primarily on Keon, but as much as his upbringing forged an unbreakable familial bond, those two periods in which Keon was by himself for long periods of time also cultivated a fierce individuality that he can tap into when need be.

“I always find my own way to focus and lock in on the fight. I do my own extra work if I feel like it's needed. It's not hard for me to get myself in shape, because I've been in situations when I've had to train by myself and focus on me,” said David. “So with all the attention that my brother gets or other people are getting for their fight coming up, you know, I'm just proud. I just be proud for everybody and what they got going on. But, you know, at the end of the day, I still got to fight and I just make sure I'm still locked in.”

At 23 years of age and just one fight into his career, it may feel as though it’ll be a long while before Keon is in the same echelon as Keyshawn, but if you know anything about the Davis brothers, you know they’re never that far apart from one another.

“I feel like it's not gonna be long. God willing, I can fight for a title or get a major opportunity in under ten fights,” said Davis.