Memphis Grizzlies: 3 changes to expect in Jaren Jackson Jr.’s return

The Memphis Grizzlies will have a drastically improved defense

We’ve talked about how the Grizzlies have had elite offense in the month of April, but the defense has slipped under the radar in the first month of spring. Why? Well, there’s no great way to put it — it’s been pretty bad.

It’s not surprising, as this is generally a unit that plays to its level of competition. By that, I mean that they tend to play close games, even if their opponent is significantly better or significantly worse than them. As a result, the offense plays well and the defense takes a step back.

That said, the Grizzlies will be getting back the best defensive player on their team in Jaren Jackson Jr. You could make the argument that Justise Winslow is a better defender, but you’d be dead wrong. Jackson Jr. is the full package on that side of the ball.

The interior defense will improve in a big way, but the area that will see a lot of improvement is actually the Grizzlies’ perimeter defense. Here’s why.

Without Jackson, the Grizzlies have been playing excessive help defense down low. Jonas Valanciunas is a very solid defender, but he can only do so much. He has been alone down there, hence the excessive amount of double-teams.

Jaren Jackson Jr. will change that. Teams won’t be able to distract the Grizzlies by throwing a couple of big men down low; instead, they’ll have to beat Memphis on the perimeter in other ways. This should have a huge ripple effect on a defensive unit that has been underwhelming as of late.