Memphis Grizzlies: It’s Time To Start Building Around Jaren Jackson Jr.

Jaren Jackson Jr. Is The Future

Jackson has had a few games this season where he has put the league on notice but every night he at least makes a couple of plays that show his potential. On the season he is averaging 13.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game.

His shooting percentages are pretty good as well as he is shooting 52% from the field, 34% from three-point range, and 78% from the free-throw line.

When he led that comeback against the Brooklyn Nets on the road he impressed every NBA fan and showed every Grizzlies fan why they should be excited about this team’s future with that man leading the way.

In that game, he finished with a career-high 36 points on 13-22 shooting, including 3-7 from beyond the arc. He made two clutch shots at the end of regulation to bring this team back from a seven-point deficit in the final 27 seconds.

He converted a four-point play to cut the lead to three and then forced a turnover on an inbounds pass to give the Grizzlies the ball back. Memphis ran a play for him to get a top of the key three and he hit it from deep over the outstretched arm of Jarrett Allen. The Grizzlies would go on to win that game 131-125 in double overtime.

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It’s just one game so you don’t what to overreact but with how much the team has struggled recently it’s always good to stay positive by reminding ourselves that this dude is a special talent.

It is worth questioning though why hasn’t he had similar performances since then. There are a variety of reasons but the conclusion is that they need to find a way to get him more involved.

He needs to be the focus of the team the rest of the season. This team isn’t going to make the playoffs and they need to just focus on the few young players they have, led by Jackson Jr.

It’s hard to let go of Conley and Gasol and move onto the next chapter of Memphis Grizzlies basketball but it is time. They are two of six current players to have played 10+ seasons with their current team.

They don’t need to worry though, the team is in good hands going forward with Jackson Jr. leading the way, with more young talent coming in the future.