SAN FRANCISCO – Although he stands 6 feet 9 inches tall and weighs a healthy 248 pounds, no Warriors Player likes to turn a basketball game into a sprint like Tracey Jackson-Davis.
He tries to beat opposing centers down the court on quick blocks, always slams the offensive glass after his teammates’ shots, and perpetually dives toward the rim like a roller in the team’s complicated offensive sets.
In doing so, the third-year center has become a reliable option off the bench for Kerr, who said limiting Jackson-Davis’ playing minutes is actually the key to unlocking his potential.
“I like to play him in short bursts,” Kerr said after Sunday’s practice. “He’s at his best when he’s really sprinting down the floor.”
That’s exactly what Jackson-Davis has done over the past seven games, when he returned to the lineup after a week of inaction. He has played in every game since Dec. 4 after playing in just 12 of their first 22 games this season.
The 25-year-old big man is averaging 13.9 minutes per game, making 70.6 percent of his baskets, grabbing 4.4 rebounds per night while blocking one shot per game.
When Draymond Green was kicked out In the second quarter of the Warriors’ 119-116 win over the Suns, Jackson-Davis grabbed seven rebounds — three on the offensive end — when pressed into action and played 17 minutes.
On a team that starts Green, 35, and Quinten Post, on the floor, at five, Jackson-Davis’ above-the-rim style gives the Warriors’ offense a different dimension.
The former Indiana Hoosier had over 100 dunks in each of his first two NBA seasons and has 15 jams in just 19 games this season.
His prolific number of dunks can be explained by the larger role he played earlier in his career.
After starting 37 of the Warriors’ first 46 games last season, Jackson-Davis has since been relegated to minutes. Two minutes here, three minutes there during eruptions.
But even though Jackson-Davis is getting more regular playing time, Kerr believes getting him in short bursts is something that benefits his center’s play.
“We ask guys to crash every play, sprint down the field, run to the corners,” Kerr said. “Especially for big guys, it’s hard to play a streak of eight straight minutes if you’re doing all that.”
Jackson-Davis has taken a balanced approach in every role he’s played during his three years in the Bay Area, and this new rotation is no exception.
“If I’m playing well, then (Kerr) usually extends that,” Jackson-Davis said. “So with me, that’s all I can control. I’m just going to keep running the court, trying to block shots, playing with energy and doing things of that nature.”
