Jaren Jackson Jr. Rumors

As an example, leading up to trade deadline in February, the Raptors were working hard to try and make a deal that would land them Jaren Jackson Jr. from the Memphis Grizzlies before he was ultimately traded to the Utah Jazz in a package that included three first round picks, according to multiple league sources. The sticking point was finding someone to take on Jakob Poeltl’s four years and $104 million the 30-year-old has owed to him.

SportsNet

The whole thing really blew up on Monday night, when Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. were actually sitting courtside at an Orlando Magic playoff game to support their old Grizzlies teammate, Desmond Bane. The broadcast kept panning over to Morant and Jackson Jr. each time they celebrated a Bane triple, and eventually, fans flocked to social media to post photos of Morant and Jackson Jr, jokingly writing captions along the lines of: “What are they doing?? They have a game tomorrow!” “I just seen my timeline talking about, ‘Don’t they have a game?’” Zinzy said. “And I was like, ‘This is crazy. Like, why do so many people get the reference?’

SB Nation

MrBuckBuck: Desmond Bane on Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. being at his game tonight: “It’s special. Those are guys that I spent 5 years with… It’s a friendship that’ll last forever… I’m thankful that they pulled up to support.” Via: reddit.com/r/nba/comments

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Oh No He Didn't: Desmond on Ja and JJJ being at the game tonight: "It's special. Those are guys that I spent 5 years with, started my career with, made a lot of memories with. It's a friendship that'll last forever. Those are guys that mean a lot to me. I'm thankful that they pulled up to support"

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Fullcourtpass: Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr in Orlando taking in the Magic and Pistons

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A lot has changed around the Grizzlies and with Morant in that time — in particular, the absence of Jaren Jackson Jr., who was part of an eight-player deal on Feb. 3 that sent him to the Utah Jazz. Morant called the trade deadline "difficult." "I wasn't a fan of it, but it's a business, so, like I told him, he's been a pro for eight years now, so continue to be that," Morant said March 7 ahead of the Grizzlies' game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Memphis Commercial Appeal

IN THE LEAD-UP to the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 5, the Warriors checked in on Jaren Jackson Jr., Giannis Antetokounmpo and were among the teams to make a call about Kawhi Leonard when it appeared the LA Clippers might be open for business, league sources said.

ESPN

"He gives us the interior presence that we didn't have that can score with his mismatches in the post," said Terry in a one-on-one interview with RG of Jackson. "But he also stretches the floor and can shoot with high efficiency from three. We love his versatility. Obviously, we know what he does defensively as a rim protector, but his offensive versatility combined with (Lauri) Markkanen, it is a tough, tough combo."

Responsible Gaming

Terry spoke glowingly of the potential of a Jackson-Markkanen backcourt, two All-Stars that will be leading the way for the Jazz. "We're a young team, we're rebuilding, but just made a move at the deadline to get Jaren Jackson Jr, appearing with Lauri Markkanen, which gives us one of the one of the most dominant front courts in the league," Terry said.

Responsible Gaming

Damichael Cole: Jaren Jackson Jr. just walked from the back and got an ovation from fans. Will be a few moments like this tonight

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Jaren Jackson Jr: Eight years with the Grizzlies organization, with this CITY, these fans…… It’s been a journey. When we were rolling, there was nothing you could say. Nothing. FedExForum was JUMPING. If you don’t remember that, then I guess you just weren’t really there. But I guess it’s like they say: All good things must come to an end. I remember after getting the news, I walked in the locker room looking at my phone, about to shower. I already had a text from Lauri, welcoming me to Utah. But one thing I’ll never forget was a moment in the locker room before I left, when everyone was joking around again. And it was just so weird because in my head it was like, Wow, this is the last time I’m gonna see this.

The Players' Tribune

Jaren Jackson Jr: Then 2022 hit. All Access was coming to town. ESPN was coming to town. Rappers are court side. Everyone is a believer — fully. We started off with no expectations and blew the league out of the water. Everything was clicking. I remember we went on a 11-game win streak, and then Dillon’s birthday fell right after that so we were turnt up. Taylor had that energy. He would have break-bread dinners, we’d go bowling, play kickball, have staff games, three-on-three, we’d have staff one-on-one. We went to a baseball field and played baseball with custom jerseys. We went to an escape room. We would do a ton of stuff together, like real wholesome. Haha. Basically, we weren’t trying to sit in a hotel.

The Players' Tribune

Jaren Jackson Jr: We made them at a very high point in our careers, with a lot of eyes on us. And when we were still just learning how to grow up as men. You gotta understand, there were things we had to deal with in our private lives — taking care of our families, some of us raising kids and these kinds of things. I’m not afraid to admit that it weighed on us at times. I know people said we needed to be more professional to get over that hump — I’ll be honest, I don’t necessarily agree with that. Professionalism comes from how you prepare, and behind the scenes, we were an Xs and Os team. We practiced hard and worked out even harder. There’s just no way anyone worked harder than us. But in the end, I guess it just wasn’t enough.

The Players' Tribune

Mark Medina: Utah Jazz announce they will reevaluate Jaren Jackson Jr in four weeks after having surgery in his left knee

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