For the Golden State Warriors, one of the defining narratives of the past few seasons has been their struggle to identify a center who can properly complement their Stephen Curry-centric scheme.
Kristaps Porzingis showed flashes of being that piece towards the end of the regular season, and the Warriors will have a serious decision to make this offseason regarding his free agency. What has been clear, though, is that many of the options they've tried have fallen far short of the mark. Chiefly among these was Trayce Jackson-Davis, who saw starts for Golden State near the beginning of the 2024-25 season before falling out of the rotation entirely as the Warriors reconstructed their roster.
After he spent much of 2025-26 riding the bench, the acquisition of Porzingis ultimately forced the Warriors to move on from Trayce Jackson-Davis. He was dealt to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2026 Draft.
Now, even with sub-par production from him since the move, it seems as though the Warriors may have gifted Jackson-Davis another NBA lifeline by dealing him to Toronto. Given the Raptors' lack of depth in the frontcourt, it remains likely they pick up Jackson-Davis's team option this offseason.
Raptors could give Trayce Jackson-Davis another shot at finding his role in the NBA
When the Warriors selected Jackson-Davis with the 57th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, there was reason to be optimistic about his outlook as a second-round selection. When he had a highly productive rookie season, averaging 7.9 points and shooting 70.2% from the field across 68 games, there was even more reason for excitement.
But it became clear during his sophomore campaign that Jackson-Davis didn't have the size or the defensive acumen to play center full time, and he didn't have the shooting away from the rim to be a viable power forward. He became a valuable depth piece with above-the-rim abilities, but not much else.
There was always a chance, though, that a change of scenery and role would help him regain some of that dynamism he captured as a rookie. Instead, things in Toronto went just as poorly. He played in just 15 of the Raptors' 26 games after the trade, and he averaged just five minutes and 1.8 points in that span. In Toronto's first-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he saw a grand total of four minutes on the court.
With a team option looming this offseason, it would be reasonable to think that the Raptors might want to use that roster spot on a more productive player. It's likely what the Warriors would have done if he was still there.
But Sandro Mamukelashvili far outperformed his deal this season. With a player option looming this offseason, he could very well be finding a new home considering the Raptors' financial constrictions. Given the injury concerns surrounding Jakob Poeltl, Jackson-Davis's $2.4 million cap hit could suddenly become very attractive to Toronto.
If Jackson-Davis had played out the end of his deal with Golden State, he may have seen some extra opportunities towards the end of the season as the Warriors' rotation got decimated. But with the Raptors, he will likely soon be gifted an additional year to prove himself as an NBA-caliber froncourt piece.
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