How good has Jaren Jackson Jr. been for the Grizzlies?
The big man out of Michigan State has flourished on the defensive end this season, but how much of an impact is he actually having on the Grizzlies success?
Advanced statistics used in this article are from StatMuse.com, NBA.com, and ESPN.com.
Jaren Jackson Jr. always had the potential to be one of the best two-way players in the NBA, which is why he was selected 4th overall in the star-studded 2018 NBA draft, right before Luka Doncic and right after Trae Young.
Jackson Jr. is a 6-11 big man who blocks shots at an elite level and showed consistency and efficiency from beyond the arc in his lone season at Michigan State. It was a no-brainer selection at the time for the Grizzlies, who knew that they could develop him into one of the league’s best players.
However, even though Jackson Jr. has been an elite shot-blocker since entering the league averaging 1.4 blocks his rookie season, 1.6 blocks his second year, 1.6 blocks his third year, and 2.2 blocks this season, Jackson’s development as a shooter has yet to come to fruition, mostly due to injuries and setbacks. In fact, Jackson Jr. has only played in 185 games in four seasons for the Grizzlies, 58 his rookie year, 57 his sophomore year, only 11 last year, and already the most games he has ever played with 59 so far this season.
Jackson Jr. had a promising rookie season where he was extremely efficient averaging 13.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks with an eFG% of 54.9, a TS% of 59.1, and a 3PT% of 35.9. His second year was even better as he averaged 17.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks, with an eFG% of 56.5, a TS% of 59.3, and an amazing 3PT% of 39.4 with 6.5 3PT attempts on average (already a 4% improvement from his rookie season with way more attempts).
However, in Jackson Jr.’s 3rd year he missed almost the whole season only playing 11 games and averaging just 14.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game with a miserable eFG% of 49.2, a TS% of 55.2, and an abysmal 3PT% of 28.3 (an 11% decrease from the previous season). Jackson Jr. could not get a rhythm going last season as he was probably hurting in all of those 11 games he played before tearing his meniscus in his left knee which forced him to miss the rest of the year.
This season, Jackson has played in every game so far and has dominated on the defensive end averaging 2.2 blocks (by far his career-high) which ranks tied for 3rd in the NBA this season. However, even though Jackson Jr.’s elite defense has been a crucial part in catapulting the Grizzlies to becoming a legitimate title contender, he still can’t seem to find the shooting rhythm he had before his injury last season.
Jackson is averaging 16.7 points and 6 rebounds with an eFG% of 47.9, a TS% of 53.3, and a 3PT% of only 31.8 on over 5.5 attempts per game this season. Jackson’s eFG%, TS%, and 3PT% are by far the lowest of his career (since the 11 games last season didn’t count) and one could say Jackson Jr. is a liability on offense this season and that would not be an exaggeration by any means.
One of the most inefficient players in the NBA on offense, Jackson has had trouble finding his shooting stroke ever since his meniscus tear. Although Jackson Jr. still has the ability to become an efficient and dominant shooter and scorer on the offensive end as he showed in college and during his first two seasons in the NBA, it just hasn’t happened yet and doesn’t look like it will happen at all this season at least.
Ja Morant is obviously the #1 reason why this team has become a title contender, and Desmond Bane’s meteoric rise into one of the league’s best shooters has also been a big part of that as well. A lot of role players are stepping up as well like Brandon Clarke, Kyle Anderson, Dillon Brooks (when healthy), Steven Adams, De’Anthony Melton, and others. However, Jackson’s defensive dominance has helped the Grizzlies become the 9th ranked defense in the NBA this season and they started off the year much lower which shows that they are only getting better defensively.
In conclusion, even though Jackson Jr. is struggling offensively and is one of the most inefficient players in the league, his defense is one of the biggest reasons why this Grizzlies team is succeeding as he is the sparkplug of the defense and it outweighs his struggles offensively.
The Grizzlies would not be where they are without Jackson Jr. turning it up a notch defensively and that deserves to be praised even though he hasn’t turned into the player that many fans were hoping he would turn into offensively by this point in his career.