4 Grizzlies who will be in awards races this season

With the 2024-25 NBA season right around the corner, the Grizzlies will look to return to a winning track. To return to the upper echelon of the Western Conference, the team figures to have several players who can compete for NBA Awards provided they can play the minimum required 65 games to be eligible.

The roster is stacked with high-end, talented players who have won awards (Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Marcus Smart), made NBA All-Star teams (Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.), and made All-NBA teams (Ja Morant). Health will play a huge factor in determining who can make some noise in the NBA's award races, but the Grizzlies have a good group that can contend for them.

Sixth Man of the Year - Brandon Clarke

The Sith Man of the Year race has always been intriguing. Most winners in past years were players who scored in bunches off the bench for a good team. That is why players like Jamal Crawford and Lou Williams seemed to dominate this award for years, as their scoring prowess was hard to overlook.

However, this award has taken new meaning as Malcolm Brogdon and Naz Reid have won the award while averaging less than 15 points in the last two seasons. Here is the opportunity for Brandon Clarke to enter the discussions for the upcoming season.

Clarke finished 11th in the Sixth Man of the Year race in the 2021-22 season and has been one of the NBA's better bench players throughout his five-year career. He has career averages of 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks in 21.3 minutes per game. With a rookie center entering the starting lineup, expect Clarke to get a few extra minutes, as the veteran who knows the league and pairs well with Jaren Jackson Jr.

Another component to Brandon Clarke will be his willingness to shoot threes as he did during his rookie year. Clarke shot 35.9% from three during his rookie year campaign but has dwindled every season since. However, he was more willing to attempt threes again in his small stint last season after his return from a torn Achilles, attempting one three in each of his six games played last season. Clarke will be a player to watch this season as his role increases with the Grizzlies.

Rookie of the Year - Zach Edey

The betting favorite on several sportsbooks this offseason points to Zach Edey winning Rookie of the Year and it makes sense. He is the reigning two-time national player of the year in college, was drafted in the top 10, and will be starting on not only a playoff contender but an NBA Finals contending team.

The pairing with an All-NBA player in Ja Morant, two previous Defensive Player of the Year winners in Jaren Jackson Jr. and Marcus Smart, and one of the best shooters in the NBA in Desmond Bane will help make his transition to the NBA easier. With the Grizzlies rebounding issues last season, Edey will have a chance to potentially average a double-double, as he will likely get easy shots at the rim due to both his talent and the talent of those around him.

Defensive Player of the Year - Jaren Jackson Jr.

This was an easy choice as prior to last season, Jackson Jr. was the winner of this award and finished top five in voting in the 2021-22 season. Also, he made first team All-Defense in both of the those seasons.

His defensive impact decreased last season for obvious reasons. He was the only relatively healthy rotation member throughout the season, leading him to take a bigger role on offense. Also, the need for him to play a lot of his minutes at the center position severely hurt his impact, as he is best suited to play power forward.

The presence of Zach Edey starting alongside him will allow him to roam freely again, as he did when Steven Adams was the starting center. This led to him leading the NBA in blocks per game for back-to-back seasons.

MVP - Ja Morant

To win the MVP award means not only was this player healthy and playing at an elite level, but it also means that his team is competing for the number one seed in the Western Conference. As tall of a task as that may be, Ja Morant is that talented of a player to make that happen.

Ja Morant is a proven winner and one of the best point guards in the league as a scorer and facilitator. After finishing 7th in MVP voting in the 2021-22 season, Morant's career took a turn for the worse, but his numbers remained the same. Now it is time for redemption, and his mentality has always been to prove a point every time he steps foot on the basketball court.

Anthony Edwards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and others have passed him in terms of the talk of the league, but the fact remains that Ja Morant is just as talented as nearly anyone in the league. With his past behind him, expect the Grizzlies superstar to challenge for the NBA's most prestigious award this season.