Wizards Pick Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, Trade Him to Warriors in 2023 NBA Draft

After a first-team All-American senior season at Indiana, Trayce Jackson-Davis will play alongside Steph Curry next season. The Washington Wizards selected Jackson-Davis with the No. 57 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, then traded his draft rights to the Warriors.
Wizards Pick Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, Trade Him to Warriors in 2023 NBA Draft
Wizards Pick Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, Trade Him to Warriors in 2023 NBA Draft /

Trayce Jackson-Davis waited longer than expected, but he eventually landed with the Golden State Warriors.

The Washington Wizards selected Jackson-Davis with the No. 57 overall pick, then traded his draft rights to the Warriors during Thursday's night's 2023 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Entering the draft, some projected Jackson-Davis to be a late first-round pick, but he dropped to No. 57 overall, the draft's penultimate pick. The Indiana Pacers – Jackson-Davis' home-state team – passed on him multiple times, but he's eager to prove those that didn't draft him wrong.

"Y'all will regret it," Jackson-Davis Tweeted Thursday night. "I promise you."

Jackson-Davis joins a Golden State team with recent NBA championships in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022. The Warriors are led by two-time MVP Steph Curry, along with Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins. 

With this pick, Indiana now has eight players in the NBA, including Jackson-Davis (Golden State Warriors), Hood-Schifino (Los Angeles Lakers), OG Anunoby (Toronto Raptors), Thomas Bryant (Denver Nuggets), Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers), Langford (San Antonio Spurs), Victor Oladipo (Miami Heat) and Cody Zeller (Miami Heat).

Jackson-Davis was one of college basketball's stars last year, earning consensus first-team All-American honors during his senior season. He tested the NBA Draft waters following his sophomore and junior years, but made major strides under coach Mike Woodson as a senior, boosting his draft stock.

With drastically improved ball-handling and passing, plus his usual dominance in the paint, Jackson-Davis did it all for the Hoosiers in 2022-23. He averaged 20.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.9 blocks per game, while shooting 58.1 percent overall and 69.5 percent from the free throw line. If it wasn't for Purdue's Zach Edey, Jackson-Davis made a strong case for both National and Big Ten Player of the Year.

Jackson-Davis graduated Indiana as the program's all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots, and he finished No. 3 on Indiana's all-time scoring list, behind Steve Alford and Calbert Cheaney. In total, he was a four-time All-Big Ten honoree, two-time Big Ten All-Defensive team and two-time All-Big Ten Tourney player.

Jackson-Davis is one of three players in Indiana history to ever record a triple-double – joining Juwan Morgan in 2018 and Steve Downing in 1971 – which he accomplished on Dec. 7, 2022 against Nebraska. During his junior season, Jackson-Davis set an Assembly Hall scoring record with 43 points against Marshall.

Jackson-Davis' senior season was highlighted by four games with 30-plus points, 18 double-doubles and eight games with five or more blocked shots. 

Indiana Hoosiers forward Trayce Jackson-Davis (23) celebrates a made basket in the second half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Indiana Hoosiers forward Trayce Jackson-Davis (23) celebrates a made basket in the second half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

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  • HOOD-SCHIFINO DRAFTED BY LAKERS: The 2023 NBA Draft is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Thursday, and analysts have released their final mock drafts. Check out where former Hoosiers Jalen Hood-Schifino and Trayce Jackson-Davis are projected to land. CLICK HERE

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Jack Ankony
JACK ANKONY

Jack Ankony is a Sports Illustrated/FanNation writer for HoosiersNow.com. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism. Follow on Twitter @ankony_jack.