Memphis Grizzlies: 3 players who will lose minutes in JJJ’s return

The Memphis Grizzlies will be thrilled to have Jaren Jackson Jr. back in the lineup. He already played a single game with the Grizzlies, scoring at a highly efficient rate and blocking shots like he never left.

It was a refreshing sight after waiting on his return for what felt like years.

But with his return, certain players will begin to lose playing time. It’s nothing against what they’re doing, they’ll just have minutes to return to the second piece in the Memphis Grizzlies’ puzzle to success.

Which players will be seeing reduced minutes with JJJ’s return?

Memphis Grizzlies G Grayson Allen could miss out more than anybody

The first name you think of when speaking of Jaren Jackson Jr.’s return is not Grayson Allen. In fact, at the shooting guard spot, his role on this team seems completely unrelated to JJJ, at least on paper. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. In an odd ripple effect, Allen might actually lose minutes more than anybody else on this team. Here’s why.

While Kyle Anderson is the player who filled into Jaren Jackson Jr.‘s role this year, last year was an entirely different story. Anderson didn’t play the power forward position, he was one step smaller at the small forward spot.

As a result, he won’t be getting pulled straight out, rather, he’ll likely be moved down a spot. Brooks will be sent to the 2-guard spot from there, pushing Grayson Allen out of the starting lineup.

That said, Allen has been playing as well as anybody on this team, so we’ll see if Taylor Jenkins takes this into account when he re-assimilates JJJ back into the lineup.