Jaren Jackson's 27 Points Propel Grizzlies to Road Win vs. LeBron James, Lakers
The Memphis Grizzlies needed a win and delivered Sunday with a 107-99 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center.
Memphis snapped a five-game losing streak and improved to 17-16 overall, while the Purple and Gold fell to 2-4 in their last six and 19-14 overall.
Jaren Jackson Jr. spearheaded the victory for the Grizzlies with 27 points and nine rebounds, while Marc Gasol (17 points, nine rebounds and eight assists) and Mike Conley (17 points and eight dimes) stuffed the stat sheet.
LeBron James (22 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists) and Brandon Ingram (20 points) did what they could for the Lakers, but it was to no avail in the loss.
Return of Ingram Crucial for Maximizing LeBron's Season
Sunday was Ingram's second game back after he missed seven contests with an ankle injury, and it was clear how much the Lakers missed him when they went 3-4.
The Duke product is 6'9" and plays stretch forward in a number of lineup looks, much like James. He can defend the opponent's best forwards and preserve the veteran's legs on that end of the floor over the course of the long season.
He is also a secondary scorer and tied for the team lead with 16.1 points a night last season. Ingram and Kyle Kuzma (18.3 points a night entering Sunday's contest) can form a dynamic scoring duo even without James on the floor and take some of the responsibilities off his shoulders for stretches.
"He gives us another premier scorer and then on defense, like I said, he's very versatile, guards 1-4 and we're confident with him on both ends of the ball," Lonzo Ball said of Ingram while appearing on Spectrum SportsNet (h/t Christian Rivas of Lonzo Wire).
That will be critical throughout the campaign seeing how James turns 34 years old next Sunday and is coming off eight straight trips to the NBA Finals. He also led the league in total minutes last season while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers and is approaching a point in his career where it is fair to worry about the workload—even if he is an all-time great.
It is far more important for the Lakers that James be at his best come May and June rather than in the season's first half if they are going to challenge the likes of the Golden State Warriors and others in the playoffs.
He had just 14 field-goal attempts throughout Sunday's contest despite challenging for a triple-double, picking and choosing the time to enforce his will on the game instead of carrying his team on his back for 40-plus minutes like he did so often with the Cavaliers.
Lakers fans may be frustrated in the short term to see their team lose to the Grizzlies, but having someone like Ingram to shoot a team-high 15 times and assume some of James' role in the forward rotation will be important in the long run.
Nobody will remember a December loss to Memphis if James and the Lakers are playing at their best deep into the playoffs.
Grizzlies See Instant Results with Giving Jackson Green Light to Shoot
There were stretches of Sunday's game when Jackson was the best player on the floor, which was notable in a matchup featuring James, Gasol and Conley, among others.
The Michigan State product fired 21 field-goal attempts in 31 minutes, which was a game high for both teams. It was clear he had the green light whenever he was on the floor, and the No. 4 pick in the most recent draft has the ceiling to be a walking double-double when he hits his prime.
Memphis should be encouraged he plays well next to Gasol, seeing how he is athletic enough to guard the opponent's quickest frontcourt player and take the onus off the veteran. Gasol can then use his vision to find teammates from the blocks and high elbow when opponents collapse on him on the other end without having to expend full energy on both ends for the entirety of the game.
Jackson has already flashed his potential this season when he scored 36 points with eight rebounds in a win over the Brooklyn Nets and tallied 27 points in a win over the Sacramento Kings. He can add Sunday's showing to his early highlight reel.
The Grizzlies will eventually hand the metaphorical franchise keys to Jackson, seeing how Gasol will be 34 years old later this season and Conley is 31. That Jackson thrived with the green light in a marquee game against one of the league's tentpole franchises suggests good things to come and helps Memphis in its immediate race to the postseason.
Gasol and Conley are going to need help throughout the course of the season if the Grizzlies are going to reach the playoffs after missing out in 2017-18, and giving the green light to Jackson has proved fruitful in the present and will in the immediate future.
What's Next?
The Lakers are at the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, while the Grizzlies are home against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.
