According to an NBA expert, Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Memphis Grizzlies is among the league’s most overrated players.
By trading Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic in the offseason, the Memphis Grizzlies reduced their “big three” to a duo of superstars.
Now that Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are the Grizzlies’ cornerstones, some doubt that they can lead Memphis to a championship run. Jackson Jr. was ranked third on Bleacher Report’s list of the five “most overrated” NBA players.
“His reality rarely rises anywhere near that ideal level. He isn’t a good (or even average) rebounder… He mutes his own defensive impact by fouling his way off of the floor… His scoring is a lot of spoon-fed stuff… and his shooting efficiency comes and goes,” Buckley wrote.
Jackson Jr. was very underwhelming in Memphis’ first-round playoff series against the OKC Thunder this year, averaging just 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.0 steals with 37.9/27.3/85.0 shooting splits through four games.
“He is regarded as a star—and paid like a superstar—but the stat sheet doesn’t see it,” Buckley continued.
“He is inconsistent in both availability (70-plus games twice, 30-plus minutes once) and impact (negative net differential in four of seven seasons).
He isn’t much of a ball-handler or a playmaker, so a lot of his value is tied to that defensive ability and floor-spacing. He’s almost like a jumbo-sized three-and-D wing, which is helpful to have, but certainly not face-of-the-franchise material.”
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