At just the young age of 23, Jaren Jackson Jr. has already earned one of the NBA’s most prestigious awards: Defensive Player of the Year. Jackson was named DPOY on Monday in recognition of his efforts on that side of the court this season. The other finalists for the award were Milwaukee’s Brook Lopez and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley.
Jackson had the best season of his young career, putting up career-high averages in points, rebounds, blocks, and field goal percentage. The New Jersey native has led the league in blocks per game each of the last two seasons, including a ridiculous 3.0 blocks per game this year. Jackson was drafted with the fourth pick in 2018 due to his defensive upside, and he has shown this season why.
While Jackson is certainly a great interior defender, his versatility makes him even more special. He averaged 1.0 steals per game and was able to hold his own when forced to switch onto perimeter players. His otherworldly athleticism allowed him to keep up with them, and his length bothered jump shooters.
The Case Against Jaren Jackson
Two key concerns posed a threat to Jackson’s DPOY case. First, he did not play as many minutes as many voters would have liked. Jackson played just 45% of Memphis’ total minutes. Second, a later-debunked Reddit conspiracy claimed that the Memphis scorekeeper had given Jackson extra blocks and steals.
Jackson’s great play in the recent absence of star teammate Ja Morant may have cemented his spot atop the DPOY leaderboard. Morant missed nine games, but instead of Memphis struggling, Jackson led the team to a 6-3 record during that span. Jackson averaged 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game while Morant was away from the team.
Looking Ahead
More All-Defensive teams and Defensive Player of the Year selections may be in Jackson’s future. He is only 23 and is coming off his best NBA season. At 6’11, Jackson has room to improve his rebounding, as he grabbed just 6.8 rebounds per game this year. If Jackson can have a couple of seasons where he pairs his elite shot-blocking with double-digit rebounding, he may have a chance to be remembered as one of the dominant defensive forces in NBA history.
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