Last season proved to be one of the most challenging stretches in recent history for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Directly following up their second-seeded finish from the year before, this team went a putrid 27-55 through 82 games played and fell on the outside looking in on the playoff picture for the first time in four years.
In most cases, this outcome and low level of success may prove to be quite discouraging for a franchise and its fanbase, but not Memphis, as the bulk of their issues stemmed from uncontrollable factors such as key player absences and health-related issues.
Because of this, 2023-24 has widely been considered a gap year for Grind City, and, subsequently, 2024-25 is being looked at as an opportunity for the club to bounce back in a big way.
The folks at ESPN seem to be rather big on this idea of a redemption run for the organization, as they recently penned a piece predicting who will be in the running for this year’s major awards, and many Grizzlies members were found mentioned along the way.
While not all are being viewed as favorites to win the titles their names were attached to, each have rather strong cases to do so once voting season arrives.
Every Grizzlies member mentioned in ESPN’s awards predictions piece
Ja Morant: MVP
Rank: No. 9
For the Grizzlies to find themselves partaking in a bounce-back season, Ja Morant will without question need to be the driving force that he’s proven to be throughout his five-year career with the organization.
During his tenure and in every full season played out in Grind City, the point guard has only proven capable of helping guide the club to enviable heights as a collective and has received numerous accolades for his efforts.
Starting his career off with the illustrious Rookie of the Year moniker, and then following it up with the Most Improved Player award the next season, Morant has advanced upon his play with each passing season.
During the previous two campaigns heading into their disastrous 2023-24 run, the point guard led Memphis to a combined 107 wins, two second-seed finishes in the conference standings, and, in 2021-22, their fourth semifinal appearance in franchise history.
Along the way, Ja posted stellar all-around averages of 16.8 points, 7.4 assists, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.1 steals on 47.9 percent shooting from the floor while earning two straight All-Star nods, his first All-NBA selection, and two top-12 finishes in the MVP race.
Now, with him returning to a team that was lottery-bound with him sidelined for the majority of last year due to suspension and injuries, Morant seems to be coming in with revenge and redemption on his mind and is already sending warning signals to the rest of the league as he works his way back to full strength.
Should he be able to pick up where he left off prior to shoulder surgery (remember, during his nine games played he was playing lights out while the Grizzlies were boasting a record of 6-3), and the team’s success rate resembles that of 2022-23, the 25-year-old being accompanied by this come-back narrative will have a strong case to take home the Michael Jordan trophy come year’s end.
Zach Edey: Rookie of the Year
Rank: No. 2
On draft night back in June, the Grizzlies were scolded by both fans and media personalities alike for their decision to select the big, albeit presumed limited upside of Purdue standout Zach Edey.
Heck, one analyst even went as far as to call it “one of the worst picks I’ve seen in Draft history,” as fears were his old-school style of play wouldn’t translate all that well at the next level.
Of course, all of this was said and buzzed about well before the big man even first suited up in the navy, blue, and gold threads during this year’s Summer League tournament.
Now that he has, it appears opinions on the 22-year-old’s potential have pulled a 180, and, frankly, why wouldn’t they — after all, Memphis has only proven capable of excelling with a supersized, hard screen-setting, back-down center manning the pivot (ex. Steven Adams).
Following his lone full game played during the festivities (one where he recorded 14 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocks), Edey’s stock in the Rookie of the Year race skyrocketed exponentially, as his interior dominance on both ends of the ball were on full display.
Should the 7-foot-4, 300-pound behemoth be able to translate his production from throughout his four-year collegiate career that saw him earn two AP Player of the Year awards, and the talent he displayed this summer to the Grizzlies’ varsity team he could very well prove to be a real X-factor in their quest to return to the postseason.
If they accomplish this goal with Edey serving as their primary center along the way, his odds of claiming the award will be as close to 100 percent as they come.
Jaren Jackson Jr.: Defensive Player of the Year
Rank: Tied at No. 9
Last year, Jaren Jackson Jr. was tasked with picking up the slack on the offensive end what with the frequent and long-standing absences of the club’s two top-scoring options in Ja Morant and Desmond Bane.
While his newly appointed tasks on the more glamorous side of the ball did result in some career-best production (averages a new high of 22.5 points per night), the All-Star saw a slight regression in his defensive efforts compared to the season before when he actually won the highly touted DPOY.
On top of his uptick in energy being used on offense, it must be acknowledged that, with the injury and, ultimately, trade of Steven Adams, Jackson was also frequently found playing out of position, as he manned the pivot spot for a majority of the campaign.
Now, with both Morant and Bane slated to be back in the mix the 24-year-old can take on his preferred tertiary scoring role, while the addition of Zach Edey will allow him to slide back to his more natural position of power forward where, during his award-winning run in 2022-23, he ranked first in blocks per game (3.0) and block percentage (9.6), third in defensive rating (110.7) and held opposing players to the lowest field goal percentage (45.3) and largest field goal percentage difference (-2.2) in the entire league.
Taylor Jenkins: Coach of the Year
Rank: No. 7
Despite what some may wish to say following their abysmal 2023-24 season, Taylor Jenkins is, in fact, a tremendous coach in the NBA.
Since taking over the primary sideline position back in 2019-20, the 39-year-old has proven time and time again that, so long as he’s not in charge of running a roster that resembles a M.A.S.H unit, he can get the most out of his players.
Throughout his five-year stint holding the clipboard in Grind City, Jenkins has compiled the third-best winning percentage (.527) and amassed the second-most wins of all coaches in franchise history with 206, just nine shy of taking the top spot over for current holder, Lionel Hollins (214).
And while this record will almost certainly be claimed in 2024-25, accomplishing such a feat is far from the main goal the Grizzlies have heading into the year.
This team is looking to climb back up the totem pole in the Western Conference standings and re-claim their status of being one of the league’s most exciting teams to watch and toughest matchups for opposing teams to square off against.
Similar to the case for Morant, should the Grizzlies get back into the 50-win category and clinch a playoff berth, with the narrative being that of a rags-to-riches story, the man calling the shots along the way in Jenkins could realistically end up reaping the rewards of his first COY nod, a race he’s placed within the top-10 in on three separate occasions and has finished as high as second back in 2022.
