The Memphis Grizzlies spent most of the last three years battling the injury bug throughout its entire roster. After going through another season battling various injuries the Grizzlies finally gained a fully healthy roster for the first time in three years in February.
However, after three games with their full collection of players, the injuries returned during the team's back-to-back games over the weekend. The good news is none of the injuries seem to be long-term, but with the tight race among the top of the Western Conference the timing couldn't be more off for a team battling for homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
While the injuries have slowed down significantly from what they experienced earlier this season and last season, the player who has been the most available the last two years suffered an injury.
Jaren Jackson Jr. left the game vs the Atlanta Hawks
Already without Ja Morant and Santi Aldama, who were listed as questionable going into their game against the Hawks, Grizzlies All-Star forward Jaren Jackson Jr. left the game with an ankle injury a little over one minute into the game. Following a turnover by Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr. attempted to block a Dyson Daniels fast-break layup before getting called for the foul and rolling his ankle.
Shortly afterward, he limped off the floor and went straight to the locker room before being ruled as doubtful to return. Jackson Jr. missed the first two games of the season with a hamstring injury before proceeding to play their next 58 games (59 including the Hawks game) before suffering his latest setback.
Jaren has been the Grizzlies' most consistent player for the last two seasons in both the statistical column and the availability column. His performance this season spearheaded the Grizzlies' push to the top of the Western Conference standings.
He was not only an NBA All-Star, but is considered a favorite for Defensive Player of the Year, a favorite for making an All-NBA team, and even considered an MVP candidate by Sam Vecenie (Senior Writer, The Athletic). He was fresh off scoring a season-high 42 points in their loss to the San Antonio Spurs in yet another game he had to play without his sidekicks Ja Morant and Desmond Bane.
The nature of the ankle injury is currently unknown but Grizzlies fans can take solace that he was ruled as doubtful instead of being ruled out for the remainder of their game against Atlanta. While losing Jaren for any length of time hurts the Grizzlies on both ends of the court, they will need it to be on the shorter end of time length for their tough stretch to end the regular season.