The Memphis Grizzlies are without star Ja Morant on Tuesday against the San Antonio Spurs. This leaves forward Jaren Jackson Jr. to step his game up in Morant’s absence. According to the Grizzlies, the two-time All-Star has a Grade 1 strain on his left calf. The athletic guard will need time to rehab and recover from the setback, and he is expected to return early in December.
The Grizzlies have to lean on Jackson to lead them for the time being. Unfortunately for Memphis, the big man hasn’t played like a star player this season. In the 14 games he’s been a part of, the forward has averaged 17.9 points and 5.2 rebounds on 47.8% shooting.
Throughout his career, Jackson has never averaged at least seven rebounds. The most he’s had was 6.8 rpg during the 2022-23 season. The main reason for this is that he contests most of the shots within his vicinity. However, his blocks are down this season, and JJJ is only averaging 1.4 bpg.
Amid Morant’s expected lengthy absence, former New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony called out Jaren Jackson Jr. According to the former star player, he wants to see Jackson take advantage of being the lone star and be aggressive, especially when it comes to rebounding.
“Ja [Morant] is out. Here’s your opportunity to step up, man. I need more rebounds; you can’t just be averaging 4, 5 rebounds out there. I need you to be aggressive,” Melo said.
https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1990949067954835849
Jaren Jackson talks about his jersey number change
Jaren Jackson Jr. debuted this season wearing a new jersey number. He went from No. 13 to No. 8. Before the season started, Jackson revealed the reason why he switched numbers before the start of his eighth year in the NBA.
“It’s super personal to me. It’s super personal to my family,” Jackson Jr. said. “I’m connected with 8 in a real way. It reaches into the territory of new beginnings. It’s infinite. It’s just a good place to draw energy from.”
“I’ve worn eight before – in the McDonald’s game – and my dad has worn it. It gave a new beginnings kind of approach. My energy source of everything when I first got into the league was more [about] proving people wrong. Now it’s just about discipline. Now it’s about habits.”
Although he changed numbers, he’s still the same star player that the Grizzlies can count on.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
