Jaren Jackson Jr.
Jackson with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2022
No. 13 – Memphis Grizzlies
PositionPower forward / center
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1999-09-15) September 15, 1999 (age 24)
Plainfield, New Jersey, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight242 lb (110 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeMichigan State (2017–2018)
NBA draft2018: 1st round, 4th overall pick
Selected by the Memphis Grizzlies
Playing career2018–present
Career history
2018–presentMemphis Grizzlies
Career highlights and awards
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Jaren Walter Jackson Jr. (born September 15, 1999), nicknamed "the Block Panther",[1] also known by his initials JJJ, is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by Memphis with the fourth overall pick of the 2018 NBA draft. In 2023, he was named to his first NBA All-Star team, later winning Defensive Player of the Year that same season. Jackson has led the league in blocks per game in two consecutive seasons. He played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans.

Early life

Jaren Walter Jackson Jr. was born on September 15, 1999, in Plainfield, New Jersey.

Jaren started his high school career with Park Tudor School in Indianapolis. He played varsity for three years, where he averaged 10 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks per game.[2] Jackson won two IHSAA state basketball championships while at Park Tudor.[3] He was teammates with future Xavier University standout and future professional basketball player Trevon Bluiett.[4] He then transferred to La Lumiere School in La Porte, Indiana for his senior year,[5] where he met Jordan Poole[6] and started for their varsity squad.

Recruiting

Jackson was considered one of the top players in the 2017 graduating class.[7] Scout.com ranked Jackson the fifth-best player nationally,[8] first at his position and second overall in the Midwest region. 247Sports ranked him 7th nationally,[9] being 4th in his position. ESPN ranked him 8th in the ESPN 100,[10] being 2nd in his position and 2nd regionally.

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Jaren Jackson Jr.
PF 		Carmel, IN La Lumiere School

Park Tudor School

6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 226 lb (103 kg) Sep 15, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN grade: 93
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 6  247Sports: 7  ESPN: 8
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Jackson was recruited by a number of notable programs, including Michigan State, Notre Dame, Butler, Indiana, Purdue, Maryland, and several more.[11] He was invited to partake in the McDonald's All-American Game played on March 29, 2017.[12]

College career

On September 15, 2016, Jaren Jackson Jr. announced his intentions to play for Tom Izzo at Michigan State. He signed the letter of intent on November 9, 2016.[11] Jackson made his collegiate debut on November 10, 2017, recording 13 points and a season-high 13 rebounds in a blowout 98–66 win over North Florida. Four days later, he recorded a then-season-high 19 points in an 88–81 loss to #1-ranked Duke. On December 5, Jackson put up 11 points and a career-high 8 blocks in a 62–52 win over Rutgers. Four days later, he recorded 17 points and another career-high 13 rebounds in a blowout 88–63 win over Southern Utah. On January 22, 2018, Jackson recorded a then-season-high 21 points to go with 11 rebounds and 6 blocks in an 87–74 win over Illinois. On February 13, he put up a career-high 27 points in a blowout 87–57 win over Minnesota. At the end of the regular season for Michigan State, he was named both the Big Ten's Defensive Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Big Ten's All-Freshman Team, and the All-Big Ten's Third Team. On April 2, Jackson declared his entry into the 2018 NBA draft, where he was considered a potential top-tier lottery selection.

Professional career

Memphis Grizzlies (2018–present)

2018–2021: early years

On June 21, 2018, Jackson was selected with the fourth overall pick by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2018 NBA draft.[13] On July 1, 2018, he signed a multi-year, rookie-scale contract with the Grizzlies.[14] On March 29, 2019, Jackson was shut down for the remainder of the season due to a deep bruise to his right thigh.[15]

On December 13, 2019, Jackson scored a career-high 43 points, including 9 three-pointers (which tied a franchise record set by Mike Miller in 2007) in a 127–114 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.[16] On January 30, 2020, Jackson was suspended for one game without pay for leaving the bench during an altercation between the Grizzlies and the New York Knicks.[17] On January 28, Jackson recorded a career-high 7 blocks in a 104–96 win over the Denver Nuggets.[18] On August 4, 2020, Jackson suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee in a 99–109 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans hosted in the Bubble and was expected to miss the remainder of the 2019–20 season.[19]

On December 16, 2020, the Grizzlies announced that they had exercised the team option on Jackson.[20] On April 21, 2021, Jackson made his return, putting up 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 blocks in a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.[21] Two days later, Jackson scored a season-high 23 points in a 130–128 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.[22] After a series of play-in tournament wins, the Grizzlies qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2017. They faced the top-seeded Utah Jazz during their first round series. On May 31, Jackson scored a postseason career-high 21 points in a 120–113 Game 4 loss.[23] The Grizzlies would eventually lose the series in five games.

2021–present: Defensive Player of the Year and All-Star selection

On October 18, 2021, Jackson signed a four-year, $105 million extension with the Grizzlies.[24] On January 9, 2022, Jackson scored 21 points and tied a career-high with 12 rebounds in a 127–119 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[25] On April 16, during Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs, Jackson logged 12 points and seven blocks in a 130–117 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. His seven blocks set a Grizzlies franchise record for most blocks in a playoff game, surpassing Marc Gasol's 6 on May 13, 2013.[26] The Grizzlies eventually defeated the Timberwolves in six games, with Jackson recording 18 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in a 114–106 Game 6 win.[27] During the Grizzlies' second-round series, they faced the Golden State Warriors. On May 1, Jackson scored a playoff career-high 33 points, alongside ten rebounds, in a 117–116 Game 1 loss.[28] The Grizzlies wound up losing the series in six games to the Warriors, who went on to win the NBA Finals. Jackson finished the 2021–22 season leading the NBA in blocks per game at 2.3 and finished with the most blocks that season with 177 blocks, 40 more than the second-place finisher.[29] For his efforts, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team[30] and finished fifth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.[31]

On June 30, 2022, Jackson underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his right foot and was ruled out for four-to-six months.[32] After missing the first 14 games of the 2022–23 season, he made his season debut on November 15, recording seven points, six rebounds and five blocks in a 113–102 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.[33] On December 12, Jackson recorded a career-high eight blocks, alongside 15 points, seven rebounds and two assists, in a 128–103 win over the Atlanta Hawks.[34] On January 5, 2023, he scored a season-high 31 points, alongside ten rebounds and three blocks, in a 123–115 win over the Orlando Magic.[35] On February 2, Jackson was selected to his first NBA All-Star Game as a reserve forward for the Western Conference.[36] On April 5, Jackson scored a season-high 40 points, along with nine rebounds, three assists and four blocks in a 138–131 overtime loss against the New Orleans Pelicans.[37] On 9 April, Jackson ended the regular season as the league leader in blocks for the second year in a row, averaging a career-high 3 blocks per game.[38] On April 16, in the opening game of the playoffs Jackson scored a game-high 31 points on 13-of-21 shooting from the field in a 128–112 loss against the Los Angeles Lakers.[39] Memphis lost the series in six games.[40] During the playoffs, Jackson was named for the first time the Defensive Player of the Year, and was named for the second consecutive time to the NBA All-Defensive First team.[41][42]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 *  Led the league

NBA

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018–19 Memphis 58 56 26.1 .506 .359 .766 4.7 1.1 .9 1.4 13.8
2019–20 Memphis 57 57 28.5 .469 .394 .747 4.6 1.4 .7 1.6 17.4
2020–21 Memphis 11 4 23.5 .424 .283 .833 5.6 1.1 1.1 1.6 14.4
2021–22 Memphis 78 78 27.3 .415 .319 .823 5.8 1.1 .9 2.3* 16.3
2022–23 Memphis 63 63 28.4 .506 .355 .788 6.8 1.0 1.0 3.0* 18.6
Career 267 258 27.4 .466 .352 .790 5.5 1.1 .9 2.1 16.4
All-Star 1 0 7.9 .750 .000 – 1.0 .0 .0 .0 6.0

Play-in

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2021 Memphis 2 2 22.9 .333 .375 .818 3.0 2.0 .5 1.5 10.0
Career 2 2 22.9 .333 .375 .818 3.0 2.0 .5 1.5 10.0

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2021 Memphis 5 5 27.4 .426 .286 .875 5.6 1.0 1.0 1.2 13.6
2022 Memphis 12 12 27.7 .378 .375 .755 6.8 .9 .8 2.5 15.4
2023 Memphis 6 6 36.7 .422 .280 .861 7.8 1.5 1.0 2.0 18.0
Career 23 23 30.0 .399 .336 .810 6.8 1.1 .9 2.1 15.7

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Michigan State 33 32 22.2 .520 .396 .797 5.8 1.2 .6 3.2 11.3

Personal life

He is the son of former professional basketball coach and former NBA player Jaren Jackson and WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson.[43]

References

  1. ^ "BLOCK PANTHER - Trademark Details". Justia Trademarks. Justia Trademarks. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  2. ^ "Jaren Jackson's High School Basketball Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  3. ^ Neddenriep, Kyle (March 28, 2015). "Class 2A: Park Tudor wins 4th title in 5 years". Indystar.com. Indy Star. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  4. ^ "Park Tudor: 84 Westview:57". Wish TV. Archived from the original on December 31, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  5. ^ "Verbal Commits | Jaren Jackson, Jr. Player Profile, Highlights, Offers, Twitter". Verbalcommits.com. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  6. ^ Cole, Damichael (May 9, 2022). "Jordan Poole and Jaren Jackson Jr. on being high school roommates, NBA playoffs rivals". indystar.com. Retrieved September 7, 2023 – via Memphis Commercial Appeal.
  7. ^ "Jaren Jackson Jr. | NBADraft.net". Nbadraft.net. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  8. ^ "Jaren Jackson, La Lumiere School PF - Scout". Scout.com. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  9. ^ "Jaren Jackson, La Lumiere School, Power Forward". 247Sports. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  10. ^ "Jaren Jackson - Basketball Recruiting - Player Profiles - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  11. ^ a b Neddenriep, Kyle (July 3, 2016). "Jaren Jackson Jr. helps USA U17 team to gold". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  12. ^ "Michigan State signee Jaren Jackson Jr. reacts to McDonald's selection". Land of 10. January 22, 2017. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
  13. ^ "Jaren Jackson Picked by Grizzlies No. 4 in NBA Draft; Twitter Loves Upside". Bleacherreport.com.
  14. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies sign Jaren Jackson Jr. to multi-year contract". NBA.com. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  15. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies coach JB Bickerstaff just confirmed that Jaren Jackson Jr. and Kyle Anderson won't play the rest of this season". Twitter.com.
  16. ^ Sain, Anthony. "Jaren Jackson Jr.'s Historic Night Was Not Enough For The Memphis Grizzlies To Overcome The Milwaukee Bucks". Si.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  17. ^ "Knicks' Payton, Grizzlies' Guduric and Jackson Jr. suspended; Knicks' Morris Sr. and Grizzlies' Crowder fined". NBA. January 31, 2020. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  18. ^ "Denver Nuggets at Memphis Grizzlies Box Score, January 28, 2020". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  19. ^ "Jaren Jackson Jr. medical update". NBA.com. August 4, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  20. ^ "Grizzlies exercise 2021-22 contract options on Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Brandon Clarke and Grayson Allen". NBA.com. December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
  21. ^ Youngmisuk, Ohm (April 21, 2021). "Memphis Grizzlies' Jaren Jackson Jr. says returning to court after injury 'a big win'". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
  22. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies at Portland Trail Blazers Box Score, April 23, 2021". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  23. ^ "Jazz vs. Grizzlies - Game Recap - May 31, 2021". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  24. ^ "Grizzlies, Jaren Jackson Jr. agree to reported $105M extension". NBA.com. October 19, 2021. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  25. ^ "Postgame Report: Grizzlies get franchise record ninth consecutive win with victory over Lakers". NBA.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  26. ^ "Timberwolves stun Grizzlies, grab Game 1 with 130-117 win". CBS Sports. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  27. ^ Campbell, Dave (April 30, 2022). "GRIZZLIES RALLY AGAIN PAST WOLVES 114-106 TO REACH 2ND ROUND". NBA.com. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  28. ^ Walker, Teresa M. (May 2, 2022). "WARRIORS RALLY AFTER GREEN EJECTED, BEAT GRIZZLIES IN GAME 1". NBA.com. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  29. ^ "2021-22 NBA Player Stats: Totals". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  30. ^ "Jaren Jackson Jr. named to Kia NBA All-Defensive First Team". NBA.com. May 20, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  31. ^ "Boston's Marcus Smart wins 2021-22 Kia Defensive Player of the Year award". nba.com. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  32. ^ "Grizzlies' Jaren Jackson Jr. undergoes foot surgery, sidelined 4-6 months". NBA.com. June 30, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  33. ^ "MCCOLLUM, PELICANS BEAT GRIZZLIES WITHOUT INJURED WILLIAMSON". NBA.com. November 16, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  34. ^ Bailey, Clay (December 12, 2022). "JONES, BROOKS POWER MEMPHIS TO 128-103 WIN OVER ATLANTA". NBA.com. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  35. ^ Scanlon, Dick (January 5, 2023). "MORANT, JACKSON LEAD GRIZZLIES OVER MAGIC FOR 5TH STRAIGHT". NBA.com. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  36. ^ "2023 NBA All-Star reserves revealed". NBA.com. February 3, 2023. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  37. ^ Martel, Brett (April 6, 2023). "PELICANS TOP GRIZZLIES 138-131 IN OT, EARN PLAY-IN SPOT". NBA.com. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  38. ^ "Defensive Player Ladder: Brook Lopez ends season at No. 1". NBA.com. April 11, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  39. ^ "Hachimura's big 2nd half leads LA past Memphis in Game 1". ESPN.com. April 16, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  40. ^ "Lakers obliterate Grizzlies 125-85, advance to 2nd round". ESPN.com. April 28, 2023. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  41. ^ "Jaren Jackson Jr. named 2022-23 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year". NBA.com. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  42. ^ "Jaren Jackson Jr. headlines 2022-23 Kia NBA All-Defensive teams". NBA.com. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
  43. ^ "Terri Carmichael Jackson: Mom Of NBA Star Is A Sports Powerhouse In Her Own Right". The Seattle Medium. May 6, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2022.

External links

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