Warriors’ Steve Kerr wants to ramp up Trayce Jackson-Davis’ minutes for playoffs
Trayce Jackson-Davis has played a key role, at times, with the Golden State Warriors and the rookie appears to have earned himself extended minutes down the last stretch of the season.
Jackson-Davis has played sporadically with the Warriors, though has logged at least 10 minutes in seven out of his last eight games after the All-Star break. He has stepped into the second unit and provided a lift with his scoring and defense.
The 57th pick produced 15 points, six rebounds and four blocks on Wednesday in a 125-90 win over Milwaukee. He had an impressive stretch in the third quarter after blocking Giannis Antetokounmpo twice on one possession and then soaring up for an alley-oop on the other end.
That ability, coach Steve Kerr said, is what they need in the playoffs.
We have to get Trayce more minutes to get him ready for the playoffs because he needs reps and more time. You can see what he did tonight. He has an ability to finish and block shots that gives us a different look. We decided to ramp up his minutes and slide Moses (Moody) into a bigger role, as well.
His effort came at a time of need, Draymond Green said: “He saved me because I was awful in the third quarter: Missing layups, turning the ball over. Steve got me out of there and got Trayce in. He was blocking shots, rebounding, dunking the ball and (had) good finishes. He just brought the life back to us. … Trayce came in and — saved me for sure because I was awful — saved the day for us and built the lead back up.”
What a sequence for Trayce Jackson-Davis ‼️
A double-block on one end and an alley-oop from Curry on the other 💪💪
MIL-GSW on ESPN pic.twitter.com/MwM3Mdyl7h
— NBA (@NBA) March 7, 2024
Jackson-Davis is averaging 8.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks on 73.8% shooting from the field since returning from the break. He has scored in double figures twice in that span and has helped the Warriors win six out of their last eight games.
The 24-year-old leads the Warriors with 43 blocks and ranks second among rookies in field-goal percentage (69.7), fifth in blocks and ninth in rebounds (4.1) this season. He has also registered four double-doubles, including three off the bench.
Jackson-Davis has earned praise from the team throughout the season, given his ability to play mistake-free and affect games on both ends of the court. He is looking to continue that over the Warriors’ last 21 games to be as prepared as possible for the postseason.
“Obviously, the playoffs are a different beast,” Jackson-Davis said. “We’ve got a lot of vets on this team, so me and (Brandin Podziemski) are going to rely on them a lot. But coming in and getting this game experience against great teams and being able to go out and perform as hard as you can is the biggest thing for me, so I’m going to continue to play hard.”
