South Carolina basketball star GG Jackson went 45th overall in the 2023 NBA Draft to the Memphis Grizzlies last year, and many thought the NBA's youngest player would require a year or two of G League play before he was ready for big-time professional minutes.
Those thoughts proved to be incorrect as the Columbia-area native burst onto the scene in January after being called up to be a full-time member of the Memphis Grizzlies. Jackson averaged nearly 20 points per game after the call-up, and he made NBA history on numerous occasions during the season as he became the youngest or one of the youngest players ever to reach particular achievements at the NBA level.
This week, in an appearance on the Chris Vernon Show, Jackson's Memphis Grizzlies teammate Jaren Jackson, Jr. spoke glowingly of the rookie. The 2022-2023 NBA Defensive Player of the Year and NBA All-Star went as far as to say that GG Jackson could go down as one of the best wings ever to play in the NBA and has the chance to be the best player at his position in the game if things go well for him.
Jaren Jackson didn't go nearly as far as to predict that GG Jackson's future was quite so lofty, but that is how he described GG Jackson's potential ceiling.
With star guards Ja Morant and Desmond Bane returning from injury next season, the Grizz could be in line to have one of the league's top "Big 4" groups with Morant, Bane, Jackson, and Jackson, and with GG Jackson's versatility as a player who could play anywhere from shooting guard to power forward, the Grizzlies can build around that core with whatever other style of player they need.
Memphis' final game of the 2023-2024 season came over the weekend, and the former South Carolina basketball star went off for a career-high 44 points, sending the Grizzlies into the offseason with hopeful eyes set on a healthy year of contention next season.