Scotty Pippen Jr.'s outing vs Nuggets 'strong example' why Grizzlies must keep him

A wire-to-wire loss may not be an easy place to find positive takeaways for the Memphis Grizzlies, but through their 48 minutes beatdown there were still a select few entertaining factors that deserve to be highlighted.

Despite the fact that cornerstones Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. were active for the bout, surprisingly, their performances were overshadowed by the likes of scrappy sophomore Scotty Pippen Jr.

With every passing day, the 23-year-old is making a strong case for being yet another diamond in the rough brand of talent alongside guys like Vince Williams Jr. and GG Jackson, and now, with his outing against the Nuggets, Locked on Grizzlies host Damichael Cole suggests that he has just put forth a "strong example" why Pippen should be considered as the future to the backup point guard position.

Scotty Pippen Jr. makes case as future backup point guard for Grizzlies

"The scoring ability of Scotty Pippen Jr. really stands out to me and this game was another example of that. He finished with 17 points, 5-of-9 shooting, 3-of-6 on three-pointers. He knocked down a couple of those left wing three-pointers. Looked comfortable in doing so. 17 points, 4 assists. The scoring is [a] plus and it has been... Of the starters he took the fourth most shots so even though he has this scoring guard reputation, he still was getting teammates involved and not pretty much ball hogging in this situation... Thats kind of who he's been with the Grizzlies as a player up to this point."

- Damichael Cole

Of course, Cole is by no means the only pundit to have been thoroughly impressed with Pippen's showing against the Nuggets, as Grind City Media's Rob Fischer said post-Nuggets game that the youngster has "been playing really well" since making his way back to the lineup after a month-long injury-induced hiatus and while playing the role of lead ball handler.

Since first coming across ample action within coach Taylor Jenkins' rotation back on January 24, the guard has played astonishingly well and has posted averages of 12.5 points, 5.1 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.4 steals while shooting 50.6 percent from the floor and 54.5 percent from distance.

Hopefully, he can continue to show his worth within the rotation during these final few weeks of the campaign and, in turn, have his two-way contract converted into a long-term pact with the franchise to have him serve as a Tyus Jones-esque commodity moving forward.