Trayce Jackson-Davis Previews Second NBA Season With Golden State Warriors

Former Indiana basketball All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis spoke to reports on Monday at the Golden State Warriors Media Day to reflect on his rookie year and look ahead to the 2024-25 season.

Golden State Warriors center Trayce Jackson-Davis (32) dribbles the ball during Media Day at the Chase Center. / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Trayce Jackson-Davis enters his second NBA season with the Golden State Warriors after exceeding expectations as a rookie.

Following his All-American career at Indiana, Jackson-Davis was selected with the No. 57 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. After averaging 7.9 points per game on 70.2% shooting, along with 5.0 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.0 blocks per game, Jackson-Davis finished 11th in NBA All-Rookie voting.

On Monday, Jackson-Davis spoke with reporters during the Warriors' Media Day at the Chase Center. Here's the full transcript.

On what he did in the offseason and his takeaways from training with Team USA...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, so I wouldn’t really consider it an offseason. I had probably like three weeks off, but overall I was just here in the bay working with our strength and conditioning coaches, trying to get bigger, faster, stronger on the court, working out, stuff of that nature. And then going to play with Team USA, getting a few scrimmages with those guys. It was a lot of fun, learned a lot. Now I’m just ready to gear up for this season.”

On how he views his role this season...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, I think it would be a similar role for next year, just as you said, upscaled. There’s a few things that I’ve worked on that I can add to my game, like handling the ball, taking the ball up the floor, putting pressure on the defense that way, especially with guys like Steph [Curry] and BP [Brandin Podziemski] and guys like that in space, getting easy shots. So being a facilitator is another thing, and then just continuing to grind that out and learn from Dray [Green].”

On the difference between coming in as a rookie versus being a second-year player...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, I think the biggest thing for me is just continuing to take it day by day. Coming in last year, leaning on the vets a lot, I’m still gonna continue to do that. [Kevon] Looney and Dray, they’re gonna continue to teach me. But I feel like this year you get to a point where you kind of know what to expect, so being able to come out there, play the game, make reads, you kind of know what guys’ tendencies are on the floor. So just playing basketball and not having to think about other things.”

On his motivation to bring Golden State back to the playoffs... 

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, obviously it’s championship standards here. An early exit last year, guys got time to gets, guys got time off, and now we’re hungry. I know a lot of the guys have been here over the summer, a lot of the vets have been here over the summer. Everyone’s hungry, everyone’s ready to get started. So obviously we have a lot of people that are doubting us, so we just gotta continue to play together, not listen to the noise and just play the way we want to play.”

On if the chip on his shoulder has grown after just missing the All-Rookie team...

Jackson-Davis: “I would say it’s where it’s always gonna be. I always try to play with a chip on my shoulder to the highest standards that I can, so it will continue to be there next year. I think the rookie team would have been a cool little bonus, perk, just to say, ‘I told you so,’ but at the end of the day, I’m trying to play in this league for 10 to 15 years, and that’s the main goal. So just continuing to work, continuing to listen to my coaches, listen to my guys and just play hard.”

On if he got valuable learning experience competing for a playoff spot last year...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah absolutely. Just getting that experience, playing at the end of the year, how tight the race was the last 10 games, having to win those games, kind of having that pressure instilled onto you, it was all great. Just continuing to build from that, knowing how close it is. Coach always talks about the margins of victory and defeat and continuing to play like that where every play counts.”

On the responsibilities he sees for himself on defense...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, same as last year. Trying to block shots, defensive rebound. I think that’s something we thrived on last year was rebounding, and so we gotta continue to do that, especially being shorthanded and smaller. So rebounding is a huge key, and then continuing to trust each other. Our defense is five guys on a string, so trusting the man to make the right read, then when he leaves, a guy covers for him. So there’s gonna be huge on team defense, and I think coach Stackhouse is gonna help us a lot with that.”

On what he’ll miss about not having Klay Thompson around...

Jackson-Davis: “Klay, just his energy. Klay and me built a great energy, synergy on the court, and I’m gonna miss that. But I hope that he succeeds in Dallas. He’s gonna be himself, and then I just hope he’s happy honestly.”

On how different it feels coming into his second year compared to rookie year...

Jackson-Davis: “It really doesn’t feel like my rookie year ended. It just feels like I’ve continued to play, I guess, because I’ve been here the whole time. So it’s great to see everyone, though, but great to be back, and I’m just ready to work again. There’s nothing really that’s changed, just maybe getting a little stronger in the weight room and just kind of the experience factor I would say is the biggest key.”

On how much it feels like the team needs him and younger players to play big roles...

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, the young guys, I think all of us are hungry. All of us want to help extend Steph, Draymond, all those guys as long as we possibly can, take the load off of them. It’s huge for us because those guys carried this organization for the last 10 years, and now having to step up and be that focal point, be helpful for them is huge. I think we all want to be a part of that.”

On conversations with coach Stackhouse…

Jackson-Davis: “Yeah, just his teaching. He’s really locked in. He’s loud. He wants us to get out, get up, pressure the ball, stuff of that nature. I think our guys like that because I think our team feeds off of energy, so playing with energy on the defensive end of the floor, I think, is gonna lead to a lot of transition, a lot of runouts and just a high-powered offense.

On how many 3-pointers he plans to take each game...

Jackson-Davis: “3-pointers are something that I’ve worked on this offseason, whether or not or how many I shoot, it really depends. Coach and I talked about it at the end of last season. He said that, ‘I want your focal this next year to be force.’ He knows that me going downhill with my athleticism is something that a lot of bigs can’t stop, especially the slower-footed ones. But being able to have a jump shot just to keep them honest is something that’s gonna be huge for me. Being able to pump fake and go by guys and either make the right read with a pass or dunk on someone is what I would rather tend to do. So keeping the defense honest is something big for me, so if I have to shoot one I’ll shoot one, and hopefully they go in.”

On his reaction to watching Steph Curry in the Olympics...

Jackson-Davis: “Yes, I watched Steph and all the games. I was tuned in, especially the last one against France. After he hit that third three, the one that was a fadeaway step back, I may or may not have ran around my couch five times. So it was really cool to see, and that’s why he’s the greatest shooter ever.”

On Steph Curry being open to tweaking the offensive system to benefit the younger guys...

Jackson-Davis: “It just shows what he’s about, and that’s about winning. He wants just to win, and he’ll do whatever it takes to win. Us as the younger guys, we gotta buy into whatever coach is doing if he wants to change the system to make it easier for us, then we gotta do it at a 110%, not only for ourselves and trying to better ourselves, but for Steph and for Dray and guys like that who have been here carrying the load.”

On if Indiana is still just a basketball school after starting 5-0 in football and being ranked in the top 25...

Jackson-Davis: “I’m not gonna say we’re not just a basketball school, or we are. We are an everything school. We’re a soccer school. We’ve had natties in soccer, basketball. And now football is on the rise, so shoutout coach Cig and the Hoosiers.”

The full video of Jackson-Davis' press conference can be seen below, beginning at the 32-minute mark.

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