When: 6:00 PM CST, Tuesday, July 9th, 2024
Where: Salt Lake City Summer League, Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT
How to Watch/Stream: Grind City Media Mobile App
Memphis will face a familiar face to fans of the Tiger basketball team in their second tilt in the Salt Lake City Summer League. The polarizing former Memphis Tiger David Jones and the Philadelphia 76ers face off against the Grizzlies at 6 pm central tonight. Fellow rookies Jared McClain and Ricky Council IV both had big scoring debuts in their first Summer League games and the Grizzlies will look to slow down the duo. Coming off a 97-95 loss against the Utah Jazz , the Grizzlies look to building on an impressive debut for both Zach Edey and Cam Spencer. Edey finished with a double-double, tallying 14 points and 15 boards. Philly has made a lot of big splashes this summer, adding Paul George and Caleb Martin while letting Tobias Harris leave for Detroit, and adding scoring in the draft was also a priority. McCain and David Jones can both go on heaters and bury teams from beyond the arc. Can Memphis keep the pace with the additions of Jaylen Wells and Cam Spencer in the backcourt? Both defend at high levels but what about matching the 3-point prowess the 76ers bring in? Summer League looks a lot like LA Fitness ball at times, with the shooters shooting and iso players calling their own numbers. Who will be the alpha for the Grizzlies this summer to get those big buckets when needed? GG Jackson seems like a prime candidate but he has already solidified his role as a rotation guy for the Grizzlies. Edey’s role on this team is obvious but who else will step up and earn the right to have Memphis on their chest this fall?
Three Things I Want to See This Summer
- Can Jaylen Wells be the scoring wing we need?
Coming off a season where we finished last in the association in shooting and 3 point percentage, the Grizzlies are in desperate need of shooting. Jaylen Wells is a career 44% 3 point shooter and his 6’7” frame is an ideal NBA size. There is no question his about work ethic as he worked his way from a DII school to the 39th pick in last month’s NBA draft. Wells can get hot as evident by his Pac-12 (Rest in Peace) tournament performance and that is exactly what Memphis needs with Luke Kennard’s unknown status. Jaylen shot 44% from off-the-dribble and 42% from catch and shoot 3’s last season, both numbers would have lead the Grizzlies in a year where shooting was putrid at best. However, he struggled at times going under screens on defense and lacks aggressiveness getting to the rim after he gets by a defender. His quick first step creates immediate space, al la Desmond Bane, and he can knock down clutch threes in big moments.
Wells moves well, no pun intended, in space and defends at an above average rate but this is Summer League. No one watches for defense in Summer League! I want to see Wells get hot and have a legendary summer al la Jaren Jackson, Jr. did way back in 2018. Watching Jaren undo so much draft angst and pain was such a relief for Grizz fans and I hope Wells can have a similar summer. I want to see summer league coach Jason March scheme up pick and pop plays for Wells around Edey’s big body and see what we have. I want to see how Wells can respond to NBA floor spacing and if he can create his own shot in 1 on 1 situations, something Des does well but Luke doesn’t. If Jaylen can manufacture offense at a high rate, there could be a spot for him in the top 12 roster spots as a dependable bench scoring option. Can Jalyen insert himself into the Grizzlies rotation as a dependable shooter? Summer League can go a long way to help ease fan’s minds after a quiet free agency and no news on the Kennard front.
- Do we already have the backup point guard we need on the roster?
Derrick Rose is currently listed as Ja Morant’s primary back up on the early estimates of the Grizzlies depth chart. At 35 years old, and coming off a season where he only played a handful of games, Grizzlies’ fans have every right to be concerned about his ability to be that true back up night in and night out. Many fans, including Drew Gann of the Two Bucks Sports Show, have been calling for the backup point guard position to be a priority this off season. But what if we already have that option at home? Insert Scottie Pippen, Jr. and Cam Spencer. I have been big on Scottie being our true back up PG and for good reason. In his time with us last season he was in complete control of the offense, smooth at the rim, and able to defend at a high level when needed. In 21 games last year, Pippen averaged 12.9 points on 49.3% from the field and 41.7% from behind the arc. Pippen was a bright spot in an otherwise abysmal season last year and found success in the absence of Ja. His best game came on April 12 against his former team, the LA Lakers, and in 30 minutes he scored 28 points on 54% shooting and added 6 assists. The last time he played the 76ers, just for fun? He finished with 24 points and 5 assists on 56.3% shooting. The guy has proven he can get buckets when needed but he averaged 4.7 assists per game last year. THAT is where he can really help this team thirve, as a facilitator for the second unit and hopefully he continues to gel with GG this summer. Pippen and GG could be a lethal two-man combo for the Grizzlies this summer. Zach Kleiman wisely inked Pippen to a two year 2-way deal in what was likely a move to fill the backup point guard role with a cheaper deal, knowing we would be up against the apron.
Cam Spencer, who played with Santi Aldama at Loyola Maryland, comes off leading UCONN to back-to-back NCCA championship runs as their point guard and Dan Hurley had high praise for the rookie. He is a tenacious competitor, a fantastic defender, and a career 42% three point shooter.
Spencer’s “hustle stats” are a testament to his ability to play above his 6’4” frame. He averaged 4.9 rebounds per game last year on a team that included Donovan Clingan and added 1.5 steals per game. That experience with Clingan in a 2 man game can bode well for stepping in as a back up PG with Brandon Clarke or Zach Edey on the floor. He is an efficient scorer who many scouts see as a future 50/40/90 shooter. His quick hands lead to many steal opportunities and he is use to playing with a slashing guard in Stephon Castle. Cam Spencer could be the set up man the Grizzlies need behind Ja as well, especially at the premium price of a two way deal. With 2 way players being able to play up to 50 games per season, why not see what the combination of Scottie and Cam Spencer can do as the back up point guard if injuries slow down Derrick Rose once again.
- Have you forgotten about who GG Jackson II is?
I have sat on my phone watching tweet after tweet after tweet roll through from casuals saying we should consider moving GG Jackson II in a deal for Lauri Markkanen.
No offense to Markkanen, a great NBA player, but I am all in on the GG hype train and want to take you down a brief trip on memory lane for those of you who might have forgotten what we have in GG. A reminder, GG won’t turn 20 until December 17 of this year and is already in some elite company in NBA record books. GG set the Grizzlies’ franchise single game scoring record last year with 44 points (oh, and he grabbed 12 rebounds) against the Nuggets in the last game of the year. GG broke Kobe Bryant’s, yes that Kobe, record as the youngest player to score 25 points off the bench in NBA history on February 8th against Chicago. GG set the NBA record for the youngest player to make 7 threes in a game when he dropped 35 on the Warriors. GG also joined Lebron, Kobe, and KD by setting NBA scoring records for teenagers, after falling to the 45th pick in the 2023 NBA draft. Finally, he is the first teenage non-first round draft pick to make an NBA All-Rookie team in the history of the league. Over the last 18 games of the season, showing immense growth already, GG averaged 20.4 points, scored in double figures in every single one of those games and averaged 37.5 points in the final 2 games!
GG was on a meteoric rise and only got better as the season progressed, shining brightest in the biggest moments last year (see Bucks game on TNT prior to the All-Star break). GG has the chance to being to gel in a two-man game with Scottie Pippen, Jr. and utilize Zach Edey’s presence to create open shots. GG could benefit most from Edey’s size this summer to see if that three-point shot he has been working on this off season is taking. GG has knack for getting open shots and to the rim when he wants to. Summer League is a great place for young stars like GG to truly shine against lower tier competition, while honing skills that can translate to NBA games this fall.
So please stop trying to get caught up in free agency fever and move what could be the next great super star for the Memphis Grizzlies. There is still growing left to do, which is a big reason he is playing this summer, but all the tools and potential are there. GG will likely not play the entirety of the summer but I hope he plays enough to silence the doubt about what he could mean for this team, and I don’t mean as a trade piece. See below for our rookies’ thoughts on trading GG.
I will be watching along side each of you because it’s basketball and a team is wearing Memphis on their chest. I root for laundry and anytime a Grizzlies team competes, I will be there. I stayed with them to the bitter end last April. I do need some hope after what was a trying last season though. I think, in the limited capacity Summer League can, seeing what I stated above will go a long way in being a palate cleanser for last season. The Grizzlies will bounce back and find a way to get their first win of the summer tonight. Let’s go win the rest of our games and the whole damn summer league to get the hype train rolling for the 2024-25 season!