GG Jackson II’s Preseason Numbers Are Getting Hard To Ignore

Through three preseason games, GG Jackson II has scored 43 points in 46 minutes for the Memphis Grizzlies.

The latest 14 came Friday night at the United Center, where Memphis held off the Chicago Bulls, 104-100. Jackson went 5-of-9 from the field, 1-of-3 from 3-point range, and 3-of-4 at the free-throw line. He added four rebounds, one assist, and one block in 17 minutes off the bench.

No Memphis player took more shots. Ty Jerome led the Grizzlies with 16 points, and Jackson was second.

Memphis led 60-50 at halftime and by as many as 14 in the first half. Javon Small made both free throws with 0.7 seconds left. Rookie Caleb Wilson led Chicago with 21 points, and Norman Powell scored 17, going 10-of-12 at the line.

Memphis still left Chicago with work to do on the boards, by Jackson's count.

"Whenever we got stalled out, we found a way to get to the next action," Jackson said. "A little bit in that fourth quarter got a little bit stalled out, but we managed to pull away with the win. But we still got to clean up around the glass as well."

Jackson opened the preseason Oct. 5 in Atlanta with 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting and 2-of-3 free throws in 15 minutes. Twelve of those points came in the first half, a team high for the half. Memphis beat the Atlanta Hawks, 132-123.

Two nights later at FedExForum, he scored 15 points in 14 minutes against the Orlando Magic. He shot 5-of-13 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3-point range, grabbed six rebounds, and had a steal in a 122-118 loss.

Attacking the basket is the base of it for Jackson. The passing comes off that when a second defender shows up.

"I don't think it's where it needs to be, but it's on the right trajectory to being something good," Jackson explained. "In my opinion, just keep attacking the basket."

"If I draw two, kicking it out, or I had a nice bounce pass on the baseline, but just keeping it simple," Jackson continued. "And once I learned that early on in my career, I was able to find myself."

Last season, Jackson appeared in 55 games and averaged 12.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 21.4 minutes. Memphis took him 45th overall in the 2023 draft out of South Carolina. He made the All-Rookie second team in 2023-24 after averaging 14.6 points in 48 games.

On June 29, the Grizzlies exercised his team option for 2026-27, as first reported by Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer. The option is worth $2,406,205, according to Spotrac.

Jackson had a block Friday and a steal in each of the first two games. He still sees room to improve on that end.

"It's solid, but once again, not perfect," Jackson said. "There's always room for improvement, but I'm definitely not getting caught into a lot of action, so that's something to look forward to."

Memphis is working its 20-man training camp roster down to 15 before the opener, and Richie Saunders remains unsigned. Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo has experimented with different rotations throughout the preseason.

The expected starting lineup is Jerome, Cedric Coward, Jerami Grant, Cameron Boozer, and Zach Edey. Boozer, the No. 3 pick in the 2026 draft, had 10 points, four rebounds, and three assists Friday.

Edey played 16 minutes in Chicago, six more than in his preseason debut, and finished with 10 points and five rebounds.

Rookie Karim López, who was a plus-10 off the bench Friday, is also competing for minutes in the Memphis rotation.

The Grizzlies have a week before they play again, and Jackson wants it spent on the small things.

"Regrouping," Jackson said. "Fixing up our, we call it organizing, making sure we got our floor spacing. A lot of times we got caught with three guys on the same side of the floor, so just fixing up those small things will be all right."

Memphis hosts the Charlotte Hornets on Friday, Oct. 16, at FedExForum in its preseason finale.

The regular season opens Wednesday, Oct. 21, at home against the Utah Jazz. Former Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. now plays for Utah.