Jaren Jackson Jr. selected as a Western Conference All-Star reserve

Feb 3, 2023 - 12:32 AM

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Ja Morant wasn’t the only Memphis Grizzlies player to be selected to the All-Star team. Jaren Jackson Jr. will be joining him in Salt Lake City, Utah for this year’s All-Star team. This is the first time the Memphis Grizzlies have had 2 All-Stars in the same season.

Despite missing 16 of 51 games, Jackson has been a transcendent impact for the Memphis Grizzlies, elevating their defense from 19th to 2nd — 1st by a full point — since his return on November 15th. He also has 11 five-block games, the only player with 10 or more such performances. He’s also leading the league in blocks per game (3.3) — 0.7 more than the next leader, Nic Claxton.

In addition to his stout defense, he’s been very efficient offensively. He’s shooting 50.1% from the field on 11.7 attempts per game, while also converting on 36.3% of his 3’s (4.2 tries per game). He’s also hauling in a career-best 6.7 rebounds.

Jackson has been a transformative player for the Grizzlies this season, and he’s catapulted to the forefront of the “NBA’s best defender” conversation. What he does for this team on a nightly basis is no longer going unnoticed.

Despite the recent struggles for the Grizzlies, this has been a vision of this franchise since the inception of this era. Both Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are representing Memphis in the All-Star game, while the Grizzlies sport the 2nd-best record in the Western Conference.

We used to pray for times like this.

Morant and Jackson will be playing in the All-Star game on Sunday February 19th.

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