The Memphis Grizzlies were hoping to come into the 2024-25 season healthy and whole and ready to reassume their position among the up-and-coming Western Conference contenders, but that idea took a hit last Friday when the team announced that GG Jackson II had sustained a broken fifth metatarsal (the bone that connects the pinky toe to the ankle) in his right foot and would require surgery. On Wednesday, the Grizzlies announced that the surgery was successful and Jackson would be reevaluated in about three months.
This timeline means that Jackson will miss training camp, the preseason and the first six weeks or so of the regular season. When Jackson gets through rehab and his ramp-up period, he will have to find his place on a team that projects to be worlds better than it was in his rookie year. With Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart and Brandon Clarke healthy and No. 9 pick Zach Edey in the mix, Memphis’ lofty goals are realistic. It’s unclear, though, which of its forwards will solidify big-minute roles in the rotation. Jackson’s talent suggests he should be one of them.
Jackson, the youngest player in the league last season, emerged as perhaps the steal of the 2023 draft after the Grizzlies took him at No. 45 overall. In 48 appearances, he averaged 14.6 points in 25.7 minutes per game on 55.4% true shooting. Memphis finished with a 27-55 record in 2023-24, but Jackson and Vince Williams Jr. (who blossomed last year after the Grizzlies grabbed him with the No. 47 pick in 2022) were bright spots in an otherwise dreary season.
Coming out of South Carolina as an 18-year-old freshman, Jackson was seen as a questionable shooter. Halfway through his first season in Memphis, though, he was near the top of rookie shooter boards. Jackson wound up making 35.7% of his 3s on six attempts per game. He showed legit range as an off-the-catch shooter and an ability to put the ball on the floor against closeouts.
Jackson is long and pretty athletic. His finishing numbers weren’t great, but he has a clear feel for finding buckets in traffic with footwork and craft. The Grizzlies will miss him early on, and this certainly isn’t an ideal way for him to begin Year 2, but his absence should not undercut their (or his) season. If Morant and company can get out of the gate well, stay healthy and establish themselves while Jackson is sidelined, his return could be a real shot in the arm.
