The Golden State Warriors are riding high at the season's midway point.
Jimmy Butler's arrival has brought new life to the Dubs' locker room. As Draymond Green said on TNT during the All-Star broadcast, there is a genuine sense of belief within the organization. That did not exist before the Butler trade, when Golden State was clinging to Play-In hopes for dear life without any sense of direction.
"We are going to win the championship," Green said. That is an emphatic statement, infused with the extreme confidence that once defined this Warriors dynasty. It's fitting that Butler, one of our cockiest NBA stars, is the one restoring these vibes in Golden State.
The All-Star Weekend was a nice showcase for the hometown team. Stephen Curry won All-Star MVP in front of a raucous Bay Area crowd. Before that, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Brandin Podziemski starred in the Rising Stars Challenge, with the former's team advancing all the way to Sunday night to battle Shaq's OGs, a squad full of living legends.
FanSided spoke with Jackson-Davis on Sunday ahead of the main event, courtesy of Panini America. He dished on everything from the excitement of seeing his face on a collector's card for the first time, to his relationship with Steph Curry and the unique demands of Steve Kerr's system.
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Trayce Jackson-Davis dishes on Warriors system, Stephen Curry's brilliance, and All-Star Weekend
"I wouldn’t say I was [collecting cards] religiously [as a kid]," Jackson-Davis told FanSided. "My neighbor actually had a bunch of cards that he collected and he gave them to me. But I didn’t really understand it at the time, what it was. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to collect my own cards, so I can have them when I get done playing."
All-Star Weekend was a unique opportunity for Jackson-Davis. His team won the Rising Stars Challenge, overcoming the likes of Brandin Podziemski, his own Warriors teammate, in order to advance. That gave him the chance to play on Sunday against none other than Stephen Curry, one of the greatest shooters ever and an important leadership figure in the Dubs locker room.
All this took place in San Francisco, in front of countless Warriors fans. It gave Jackson-Davis a chance to do what he does best — set the tone.
"They’ve been showing out. The Bay Area, San Francisco, they love basketball. So being able to show this city some level is really, really cool to see."
The former Indiana Hoosier has a rather simple outlook on his skill set. He's not out there to break ankles or heave 3s. He's out there to run, jump, and hype up the crowd.
"[In this setting], I still kind of do the same things that I always want to do," Jackson-Davis said. "And that’s dunk the ball, get the crowd into the game, get them pumped up. So I feel like an All-Star game is the perfect place to showcase that."
Jackson-Davis recalls laughing and joking with Brandin Podziemski ahead of their Rising Stars face-off. The Golden State sophomores entered the league together — Podz as the 19th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, Jackson-Davis as the 57th pick. Rookies tend to get buried in the Warriors' veteran rotation, but Steve Kerr played both Podziemski and Jackson-Davis early and often last season. Both racked up starts and were essential to Golden State's postseason pursuit.
Why is that? To Jackson-Davis, it's a simple as understanding how to the play the game the right way.
"In the Warriors system, they play a specific way and a specific brand of basketball. I think both me and [Podziemski] play that way. We know when to make right reads, we know what to do in the offense, and that’s something that Steve [Kerr] predicates on. He likes guys that can learn and pick things up on the fly, and that’s something that me and B.P. do well."
Jackson-Davis' skill set was always a beautiful match for the Warriors' system on paper. He's a legitimate vertical threat at the rim, something Steph hasn't always had at his disposal. The 6-foot-9, 24-year-old center also processes the game at an extremely high level. He makes quick reads on the short roll and effectively navigates defensive traffic. Jackson-Davis averaged 4.0 assists to 2.5 turnovers as a senior at Indiana, where the Hoosiers often deployed him as a playmaking hub around the elbow.
As for Curry, Jackson-Davis has nothing but the highest possible respect for Golden State's guiding light. He says Steph leads by example, which is not a benefit every NBA rookie is afforded.
"Steph, the first thing about him is that his character is so high. The way that he approaches every game. The way that he approaches being in the locker room, being around other people, everything’s at a high level. He’s a great character dude, he loves the game, he loves his teammates, he loves the organization. That’s what you want out of your leader. I can’t say enough high things about him. I respect him to the highest level."
It has been a modest sophomore season for Jackson-Davis in Golden State, but he's still quite young, and he remains well-tailored to Warriors' brand of basketball. He should have a long and fruitful role-playing career in the NBA. If the Dubs do win another championship, as Draymond predicts, it wouldn't be surprising if Jackson-Davis gets his moment in the sun during that ascent.