Memphis Grizzlies: How much slack do we give Jaren Jackson before panicking?
Everyone in the free world knows Memphis Grizzlies unicorn Jaren Jackson, Jr. is off to a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad start to the 2021 NBA season.
I think if you were to ask Jackson himself, he’d agree that he is capable of playing much better. The Grizzlies front office and coaching staff believe in him, placing a $105 million bet that he’s going to be a great co-star for Ja Morant for the next handful of years.
The real question fans and experts have been posing is this early performance is an indication of regression or merely a bad slump— it’s a fair question.
How much slack should the Memphis Grizzlies give Jaren Jackson before souring on their $105 million investment?
Recently, Jonathan Tjarks of The Ringer put Jackson under the microscope and wrote about what Grizzlies fans are all thinking: Jackson has a lot of catching up to do. But how much time and how much room do we allow the big man to make mistakes?
Jackson doesn’t lead any major statistical category for the Memphis Grizzlies in this limited sample size (save for blocks per game) of seven games.
Through the team’s first seven games, Jackson is fourth on the team in scoring per game (12.4), fifth in rebounds per game (5.0), sixth in 3-point percentage (31.3) and ninth in assists per game (1.1).
To no one’s surprise, he does lead the team in fouls per game at 3.9 per game. He’s recorded four or more fouls in all but two games this season. He gets in foul trouble and usually heads to the bench once he picks up his second foul in the first half.
When he’s not on the bench, he’s not getting minutes with Ja Morant. If he’s not getting those important minutes, how can you expect him to develop and grow as an NBA player?
Let’s give Jackson some more time before fans start to turn on the young big man. He’s still getting his legs under him and relearning how he fits in with the rest of his teammates (both new and old).
Yes, he fouls a ton and that’s nothing new, but let’s see if this coaching staff can guide him and teach him to be a smarter defender. He’ll improve his stats once his confidence is boosted up a bit.
dark. Next. How Ja Morant 2.0 will impact the Grizzlies for years to come
Grizzlies fans would do well to encourage Jackson and cheer him on and root for him to work through whatever slump, funk, or trouble he’s having in his game to start the 2021 NBA season.