Trey Jemison found out five minutes before Nets game that he’d be playing

A very late lineup change for the Lakers against the Nets led to Trey Jemison making his unexpected debut roughly 48 hours after signing with the team.

Anthony Davis’ very late scratch from the Lakers’ lineup on Friday was unexpected from just about everyone, players included.

AD entered the day listed as probable on the injury report with a left ankle sprain. However, after being downgraded to questionable, Davis was ruled out for the game with a plantar fasciitis injury he’s dealt with dating back to last season.

Without any center depth this season and with the team opting against making Christian Koloko, who has already used 25 of his possible 50 games active this season, available, that left newly-signed Trey Jemison to make his purple and gold debut.

Except not even Jemison expected that to happen on Friday.

“I found out five minutes before I went out there,” Jemison said. “But it’s basketball, man. It’s a blessing, get my feet wet, get it out the way, first game jitters over with now. It’s time to work.”

Jemison was officially signed on Thursday and didn’t join the team until shootaround on Friday morning. His debut that evening, then, punctuated a pretty chaotic and exciting two days.

“I was in my mom’s house probably 48 hours ago,” Jemison said, “packing my bags like, ‘Man, I’m going to LA’ and just in shock. Like, ‘What should I pack, how many shoes should I bring.’ So excited.”

Jemison had a pretty mixed bag performance against Brooklyn. He finished the night with four rebounds and two blocks in 15 minutes. Head coach JJ Redick acknowledged there were some defensive miscues that were a result of not having any sort of time on the court with the Lakers before Friday.

Even in his limited time, though, it’s clear the different type of playstyle he can bring and how much different an archetype he is than the centers on the Lakers roster, both full-time and two-way. Listed at 6’10”, 260 pounds, Jemison is about as big and bruising as they come physically.

Jemison is under no illusions, then, of what his role will be for this Lakers team.

“My goal out here is just to be physical,” Jemison said. “Do all the hard stuff, let the other guys do the easy stuff, man. Let them score the ball. I’ll go set screens. I’ll rebound the ball.”

Hopefully, his next action will at least come with a little more notice, too.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.