The Memphis Grizzlies have continued to play basketball without a key starter in Jaren Jackson Jr. While the team has done well without him, they’ll look to make a push into a secure playoff spot. Right now, they find themselves on the edge of the play-in conversation.
The Grizzlies sit as a 9th seed currently, one spot in front of a dangerous Golden State Warriors team that has struggled with injuries all year long. Behind the Warriors, you’ll see a threatening Sacramento Kings team that has won seven of their last ten games.
Because of these factors, Grizzlies fans will be counting down the days until Jaren Jackson Jr. returns to the court. Around a week ago, Grizzlies General Manager gave an update on Jackson Jr.’s return date. Today, we received a confirmation of that from JJJ himself, reported by Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian.
Jaren Jackson Jr. says he’ll be back “very soon. Definitely this month.”
— Chris Herrington (@ChrisHerrington) April 2, 2021
It’s definitely refreshing to see Jackson Jr. say that he’ll be back soon, but we’ve heard this story before. It seems like Jackson and the Grizzlies organization have been sending messages that he’ll be returning in the immediate future for the past few months.
That said, this one seems more serious than previously projected return dates. In the past, we heard that he would be returning after the All-Star break. Unfortunately, he could return in 10 years and that would be considered after the All-Star break.
This time, the Grizzlies have said that he’ll return by the end of April. As you can see in the aforementioned tweet, Jackson Jr. said that he’ll return “definitely this month.”
His return can’t come any sooner.
Against the Utah Jazz, the Grizzlies learned how much they need more big men. With Justise Winslow out, this team struggled with size. As a team that has been thin at the power forward position all season, Jackson Jr. will give them a much-needed boost at the tail-end of the season.
For now, the Grizzlies will try to stay ahead of a few teams and maintain at least a 10-seed in the Western Conference before JJJ returns. It’ll be tough, but this team has shown that they’re capable of hanging around with anybody.