Trayce Jackson-Davis played just five total minutes in the Golden State Warriors' first three regular season games, but he had a productive night in Monday's 130-102 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
The 6-foot-9 rookie forward from Indiana scored 13 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked four shots in 20 minutes of action. He shot 5-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 from the free throw line.
Jackson-Davis said postgame the most important lesson he's learned in the NBA is to always be ready, and he did just that.
"Those guys instill a lot of confidence in me, and they expect me to go out and perform when your name is called," Jackson Davis. "I found out I was playing kind of this morning, so you've always got to be ready."
Warriors point guard Steph Curry had an incredible game, scoring 42 points on 7-for-13 3-point shooting. Playing alongside an NBA legend like that has helped Jackson-Davis' transition to the professional game.
"It's really easy when you're playing with guys like Steph Curry, Chris Paul, Klay Thompson," Jackson-Davis said postgame. "It makes the job easy – just roll and make the right play."
Jackson-Davis wrapped up an All-American career at Indiana last season under coach Mike Woodson, averaging 20.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.9 blocks. He graduated as Indiana's all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots, and finished third on the school's all-time scoring list.
Jackson-Davis gave a shoutout to his coach Monday, following his impressive performance.
"Coach Woodson did a great job and prepared me in the two years that he had me," Jackson-Davis said. "Just basically the style of offense that we ran, defensive coverages all translated over. So it's a huge thanks to him and the Indiana family."
Here's the full postgame interview with Jackson-Davis.
The Warriors are off to a 3-1 start this season and carry championship aspirations. Next up, they host the Sacramento Kings Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.
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