The Toronto Raptors traded for Trayce Jackson-Davis just over a month ago, and the team is hopeful that he can grow within their system.
Jackson-Davis has not played much for the Raptors, totaling just eight appearances and averaging 4.8 minutes per game in those contests. The Raptors assigned him to the G League’s Raptors 905 instead of bringing him on the road trip to give him an opportunity to get reps that he wouldn’t get otherwise.
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“The plan that we have for him is a long-term plan,” Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said via the Canadian Press. “We’re really trying to get him up to speed with our program, with conditioning, playing in the system that we have (and) the demands.
“I think any assignment that we have, any opportunity for him to be with our 905 program, is super important for him and super important for the team.”
Raptors Have Vision For Trayce Jackson-Davis
Toronto Raptors forward Trayce Jackson-Davis looks on against the Indiana Pacers. | Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images
When Jackson-Davis arrived in Toronto, there was hope that he could be the centre replacement the Raptors needed with Jakob Poeltl out on the sidelines for most of the first half of the season. However, Poeltl arrived back on the court promptly as Jackson-Davis made his debut, which blocked his path towards minutes in the rotation.
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This led to many DNP-CDs for Jackson-Davis, and that isn’t very conducive towards his overall development. Jackson-Davis is 26 years old, but he is still on his rookie contract and has room for growth. The Raptors view him as someone who can eventually tap into the rotation, but it is very hard to jump right in and pick things up after being elsewhere for the first half of the year.
The Raptors hope that sending Jackson-Davis down to the G League will give him an opportunity to get more up to speed with the system in hopes of possibly being someone that can contribute down the line. It’s hard to imagine Jackson-Davis getting a chance at serious minutes down the stretch of the season, but if Poeltl were to pick up another injury, it would be huge to have the third-year pro available to pick up the slack.
In the meantime, the Raptors are back in action against the Chicago Bulls at 8 p.m. ET inside the United Center.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/raptors/onsi as Raptors Plan For Trayce Jackson-Davis is the Right One.