Memphis Grizzlies Injury Report (March 16): Latest on Jaren Jackson Jr. and Scotty Pippen Jr.'s status
The Memphis Grizzlies will face the OKC Thunder on Saturday in Memphis for their third matchup of the regular season. The Grizzlies are 0-2 against the Thunder in the season series.
The Grizzlies (23-44) are third-last in the Western Conference after winning three of their last 10 games. They lost their previous game 110-98 to the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the Thunder (46-20) are second in the Western Conference and have won seven of their last 10 games. They won 126-119 in their previous game against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.
Memphis Grizzlies Injury Report for March 16
The Memphis Grizzlies have suffered numerous injuries this season. The Grizzlies have one of the NBA's longest injury reports, and they needed some of their rookies and two-way contract players to play significant minutes to field a squad this season.
While the OKC Thunder have no names listed, the Memphis Grizzlies have 12 names listed on their injury report: Brandon Clarke, Derrick Rose, Marcus Smart, Lamar Stevens, Yuta Watanabe and Ziaire Williams are listed out for the game, while Ja Morant is out for the season.
Jaren Jackson Jr. is available to play after initially being listed as questionable, while Scotty Pippen Jr. has been ruled out for Saturday's game along with Vince Williams. The involvement of Santi Aldama and Desmond Bane will be determined at game time.
What happened to Jaren Jackson Jr.?
Jaren Jackson Jr., who has been dealing with right quadriceps tendinitis, has been cleared to play after being listed as questionable in Memphis' injury report for the last 11 games.
Before the quadriceps issue, Jackson also dealt with a sore hip that he sustained just before the All-Star break. Moreover, his season was impaired by knee and elbow injuries.
However, the former Defensive Player of the Year has been one of the more relatively healthy players on the roster, having suited up in 57 games for the Grizzlies this season.
Jaren Jackson Jr. is also having the best season of his career, performance-wise. He is actively displaying his ability to rise when called upon in the absence of key Grizzlies players and a weakened roster.
Jackson is averaging 22.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.6 blocks this season while shooting 44.4% from the field, including 32.6% from beyond the arc.
What happened to Scotty Pippen Jr.?
Scotty Pippen Jr. ruled out for Saturday's game due to left shin soreness. Pippen had just come off a 12-game absence stretch due to his previous lumbar disc bulge injury.
He started for the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets and recorded nine points, four rebounds, 10 assists, two steals and one block in a losing effort.
Though it seems that Pippen is past his back issue, the severity of his new injury remains unclear.