Just two days after finalizing a lucrative five-year, $240 million contract extension, Memphis Grizzlies star Jaren Jackson Jr. underwent surgery. The procedure was performed to repair a turf toe injury located in his right foot. The team stated that Jackson sustained the injury during an informal basketball session offsite. He is currently scheduled to be reevaluated in 12 weeks and is expected to achieve a complete recovery.
This injury comes at a particularly unfortunate time for both Jackson and the Grizzlies organization, given their history of significant injury setbacks in recent seasons. Despite previous issues, Jackson managed to play in 74 games during the 2024-25 season, marking his second-highest career total, although he did encounter an ankle injury towards the season`s end. His 2023-24 season was notably impacted by injuries as well, contributing to the Grizzlies being identified by Spotrac as the NBA team most affected by player injuries that year, based on the salary cost of missed playing time. Prior to these, Jackson tore his meniscus in the 2020 `bubble` and missed a substantial part of the 2020-21 campaign during his recovery.
Jackson is coming off a standout season where he was selected for his first All-Star game. The season before that (2023), he earned the prestigious Defensive Player of the Year award. In his most recent season, he averaged 22.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, and 1.2 steals per game. His shooting splits were an efficient 48.8% from the field, 37.5% from three-point range, and 78.1% from the free-throw line.
Following the offseason trade of Desmond Bane, the Grizzlies are focused on building their core around Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ja Morant. However, Jackson`s current injury makes him the third significant frontcourt player for Memphis to face health issues this offseason. Rookie Zach Edey recently underwent ankle surgery, and Brandon Clarke is still in the process of recovering from a PCL sprain.
Jasper Hawthorne