The Memphis Grizzlies' injury luck is starting to turn in the right direction at the most needed time as the NBA season nears its halfway point. The Grizzlies are over a week removed from missing nine players for their New Year's Eve road victory over the Phoenix Suns.
As things stand on January 9th, 2025 before their game against the Houston Rockets for the second seed in the Western Conference, the Grizzlies could potentially return two integral players to their roster. Superstar point guard Ja Morant and Sixth Man of the Year candidate Santi Aldama are listed as questionable after missing the team's last five and six games, respectively.
After the returns of Brandon Clarke, Jake LaRavia, and Zach Edey after missing a couple of games last week, the Grizzlies' injury report will be down to three players. That will soon be dwindled to two players based on this week's projection for one of their young wings.
GG Jackson's return is near
The Grizzlies' second-year wing, who was one of the few bright spots from the team's injury-plagued 2023-24 season, has been ramping up his workouts in anticipation of his first game this season. While he is still ruled out and the team hasn't provided a formal update on what specific game he will return for, this week's announcements sound promising for his return happening sooner than expected.
The @memgrizz today announced the following medical update for GG Jackson II. pic.twitter.com/yOaICQptrt
— Grizzlies PR (@GrizzliesPR) December 4, 2024
Based on the injury timeline that was provided from the three-month update of his recovery from the broken fifth metatarsal in his right foot on December 4, 2024, GG Jackson was expected to return to the court within six to eight weeks. The timeline matched his returning between January 15, 2025, to the end of the month.
The January 15th date might still be in play for him to return right at the six weeks mark as the Grizzlies have a road game at the San Antonio Spurs that night. However, the 45th overall pick of the 2023 draft has been assigned to the Grizzlies' G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, to practice twice this week.
By my count that's 3 practices over 3 consecutive days (2 with Hustle, 1 with Grizzlies) for GG as he ramps up!
— Michael Wallace (@MyMikeCheck) January 9, 2025
Encouraging progress. https://t.co/dL2G2PtaYV pic.twitter.com/iE35J5Xu7n
Sandwiched between his practices with the Memphis Hustle was a practice with the Memphis Grizzlies. As the Grizzlies prepare for a four-game road trip following their home matchup with the Houston Rockets, don't be surprised to see GG Jackson return during the early part of that road trip which begins on January 11th at the Minnesota Timberwolves.
If the team wants to keep with the six weeks return timeline and give him a little extra time to prepare then their January 15th date at the San Antonio Spurs checks out. However, it seems likely that GG Jackson could return as soon as their road game at the Houston Rockets on January 13th. Only time will tell but the anticipation is here and GG Jackson's season debut is around the corner.