Pacers GM Chad Buchanan Explains Why Team Passed on Trayce Jackson-Davis in NBA Draft

The Indiana Pacers had multiple opportunities to draft former Indiana Hoosier Trayce Jackson-Davis, but Pacers GM Chad Buchanan said both sides felt the fit was not right.

Following the 2023 NBA Draft, Indiana Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan appeared on Indianapolis radio station 107.5 The Fan to discuss the team's picks.

Indiana drafted three players on Thursday night, selecting Houston forward Jarace Walker at No. 8, Belmont guard Ben Sheppard at No. 26 and Miami guard Isaiah Wong at No. 55.

Indiana Hoosiers fans were hoping Trayce Jackson-Davis would stay in his home state, but the Pacers passed on him at No. 26 and No. 55 and traded away their No. 29 and No. 32 picks. 

Buchanan and Jackson-Davis, it now appears, felt there wasn't a fit for him on the Pacers' roster.

107.5 The Fan's Jake Query asked Buchanan, "How heavily did you explore Trayce Jackson-Davis at 55?"

"I mean, we love Trayce Jackson-Davis as a player," Buchanan said. "And, you know, sometimes it's got to be a mutual interest. You don't want to have a player with you that is not coming in wanting to be there. Trayce is going to be a terrific player, and like I said, we were big fans. Obviously our roster and what he is, the position he plays, wasn't a great fit. We understood that, and his representatives understood that. But if we had been in a situation where we didn't have four players at his position, I think Trayce would have been a great option for us. And Iike I said, we were big fans of his game.

Query continued to ask, "So then was there discussion, I would assume from that, from Trayce Jackson-Davis or his camp, that he would have been happier going elsewhere and that he didn't feel Indiana was a fit for him?

"I think that's accurate to say," Buchanan said.

After a first-team All-American senior season for the Hoosiers, Jackson-Davis was projected to be a late first-round or early second-round pick. But instead, he dropped all the way to No. 57, the draft's penultimate pick. Seeing that Jackson-Davis was still on the board, the Golden State Warriors traded back into the draft to select Jackson-Davis, bolstering their guard-heavy roster with reinforcements down low. 

Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. was thrilled to get Jackson-Davis this late. Jackson-Davis is reportedly getting a three-year contract from the Warriors, somewhat uncommon for a late second-round pick.

"He'll be on the regular, call it, 15-man roster," Dunleavy Jr. said. "Not sure we'll carry 15, but he'll be on the main roster. And, you know, we're not overly loaded in the front court. We've got [Kevon] Looney, hopefully we get Draymond [Green] back, but [Jackson-Davis] is a guy that will provide us insurance, and hopefully he'll be able to grow within out program."

“We think there’s tremendous value [with Jackson-Davis], another guy we had pretty high on our board,” Dunleavy Jr. said. “A little surprised he made it that far, but you’ll take what you can get. He’s been a four-year college player, a proven player, skilled player, can do a lot of things — defend, rebound, finish. I thought his passing really improved over his last year or two in college."

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