The Memphis Grizzlies’ 2024-25 season, much like their 2023-24 season, was defined by tumult.
But where in 2023-24 Memphis missed its best players for much of the year en route to the 2024 NBA Draft’s lottery, the 2024-25 vintage at least limped into the playoffs, despite having fired head coach Taylor Jenkins with just nine games left in the regular season.
Under then-interim head coach Tuomas Iisalo (now their official head coach), Memphis got swept by the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round.
Now, in a very talented Western Conference, Memphis will be starting a bit behind the eight ball to tip off the 2025-26 regular season.
Ailing Grizzlies Big Men
Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, oft-hurt reserve power forward/center Brandon Clarke is slated to have surgery to improve a knee synovitis situation. Sources inform Charania that the 6-foot-8 big man will be reassessed in six weeks. Clarke didn’t survive the end of 2024-25 intact, as he got waylaid by a sprained PCL.
Clarke also missed all but six games in 2023-24 recovering from a torn Achilles tendon.
In 64 healthy games for Memphis (18 starts), Clarke averaged 8.3 points on 62.1 percent shooting from the floor and 70.1 percent shooting from the charity stripe, 5.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.6 blocks in 18.9 minutes per game.
But Clarke might be the least of the Grizzlies’ problems.
Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports that two-time All-Star and three-time All-Defensive Team power forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who was the Grizzlies’ best player last year, is still recovering from a turf toe offseason surgery. Memphis anticipates that Jackson will be back in action within the next four-to-six weeks, meaning it’s possible he could miss multiple weeks to kick off the regular season.
This summer, Jackson inked a five-season, $240 million contract extension on the strength of a stellar 2024-25 campaign. In 74 healthy bouts, the 6-foot-10 big man averaged 22.2 points on .488/.375/.781 shooting splits, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals a night.
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All-Rookie Team starting center Zach Edey, a 7-foot-4 behemoth out of Purdue, faces the longest road to recovery for his own summer injury. Per Scotto, Edey had a surgery to address excessive ligamentous laxity in his left ankle, and is slated to need another six-to-nine weeks to return. Maximally, then, he could be sidelined until December.
Edey enjoyed an encouraging pro debut season, averaging 9.2 points on a .580/.346/.709 slash line, 8.3 boards, 1.3 blocks, 1.0 dimes and 0.5 steals in 66 healthy regular season games (five starts).
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