MEMPHIS – “Grasshopper!”
That word emphatically shot out of Kevin Garnett’s mouth. Then, the former NBA
superstar leapt from his seat with both arms raised above his head as if he were
clutching a basketball.
Seated next to Garnett inside the Grizzlies’ film room on a recent afternoon,
Jaren Jackson Jr. flinched at the sudden burst of energy, motion and emotion
Garnett flashed as the play unfolded on the screen.
“Stop it there for a second,” Garnett demanded as the video was paused just as
Jackson caught a mid-post entry pass during a Jan. 21 game against the Pelicans.
“You gotta get into your grasshopper right there,” an intense Garnett explained
to Jackson as he pointed toward the huge TV screen a few inches away. “And get
your head up.”
A week has passed since Garnett dropped by to personally check in on Jackson
midway through a turbulent but encouraging rookie season. Jackson intends to
continue implementing some of Garnett’s tips and tutelage as the Grizzlies wrap
up a five-game homestand Monday against the Nuggets.
Jackson has already shown stronger signs of vocal leadership and a more precise
offensive approach the past few games. In one of his best games this month,
Jackson’s 20 points on 57.1 percent shooting, six rebounds, two assists and a
steal in 31 minutes helped the Grizzlies halt a season-long, eight-game losing
streak with Saturday’s 106-103 win over Indiana.
But the seeds that sprouted in Jackson’s performance Saturday were planted back
in the Grizzlies’ film room four days earlier. That’s when Garnett settled in
for a daylong session with Jackson that will be featured Tuesday on KG’s Area21
segment during TNT’s national double-header broadcast of games.
Garnett’s use of “grasshopper” with Jackson oozes with symbolism.
A 15-time NBA All-Star, nine-time All NBA first-team pick, 2008 NBA champion,
2004 MVP and soon-to-be Hall of Famer, Garnett knows every angle of the game.
His “grasshopper” is a signature gather motion, with elbows extended, to set up
an offensive move. He was reaching into his extensive bag of tricks to share
with Jackson.
In another sense, ‘grasshopper’ is the term of endearment a master teacher uses
to refer to a supremely talented understudy. The moniker was popularized on the
1970s martial arts TV drama, ‘Kung Fu.’ It applies here, between an NBA legend
and a 19-year-old franchise cornerstone.
Garnett, 42, has taken Jackson under his wing the past year. The midseason visit
to Memphis was the second time in eight months that one of the greatest power
forwards in NBA history took time to personally meet with Jackson for a tune-up
on and off the court.
Why?
“I told you before; I see a lot of myself in him,” Garnett said. “He’s the
future. I wouldn’t have wasted my time coming out here to work with him if I
didn’t feel that way about him.”
Over two days last week, Garnett sat courtside and watched Jackson as the
Grizzlies suffered a 20-point loss to the Pelicans. The next day, Garnett
visited practice and also spent time with Jackson in the film room before the
two returned to the practice court for their own brief workout together.
Garnett also mentored Jackson last summer in California just before June’s NBA
Draft, where the 6-11 power forward out of Michigan State was selected fourth
overall by the Grizzlies. Back then, Garnett and Jackson hiked the sprawling
Calabasas Stairs. Jackson has since ventured halfway through his NBA rookie
season journey. This time, Garnett visited Memphis to see how well Jackson was
adjusting.
“It’s really flattering and just shows how intense and knowledgeable K.G. is,
and how he cares,” Jackson said. “He’s been done playing for a while, so just to
see him still traveling to see games, still coming to teach you individually –
not just calling you, but coming face to face like this – is just cool.”
It’s even cooler when Garnett gets heated.
Still close to his wiry NBA playing shape, the 7-foot Garnett was often animated
and in constant motion as he demonstrated moves, positions and angles for
Jackson to apply. In the rare moments his body stopped for a few seconds,
Garnett’s mouth still kept firing – spraying golden nuggets of wisdom as Jackson
tries to balance the progress he’s made amid his team’s painful stretch.
“Character is everything and ain’t no shortcuts to this,” Garnett told Jackson
on the elevator to go from the film room to FedExForum’s practice facility. “I
was just telling your coaches that every team goes through a point like this in
the season. But the realest thing is that it’s important you keep true to who
you are.”
Garnett arrived at a tumultuous time.
Memphis entered this week having lost 14 of its last 16 games, and franchise
pillars Mike Conley and Marc Gasol have been informed the team is fielding
offers for them as the Feb. 7 trade deadline looms. The Grizzlies (20-30) carry
the second-worst record in the West into Monday’s visit from the second-place
Nuggets (33-15).
Ironically, Jackson is in the midst of his most productive scoring month as the
team closes out January this week trying to build on Saturday’s breakthrough. He
averaged 15.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and a block on 52.6 percent shooting in 27.8
minutes through 14 January games. Midway through the season, Jackson led all
rookies in blocks, ranked second in field-goal percentage, was fourth in steals
and fifth in scoring.
He’s been statistically impressive, but realistically dissatisfied.
“It’s been a rough stretch, (and) there are a lot of things we need to fix,”
Jackson said. “It just comes with learning. We have to treat this as a learning
experience.”
From that standpoint, special visitors couldn’t have hit town last week at a
better time. The two former players Jackson is most compared to are Garnett and
Chris Bosh, who entered the NBA when traditional, low-post big men dominated the
league. But they both helped to usher in an era in which bigs have stretched
their shooting to three-point range, handle the ball like guards and defend
multiple positions.
Jackson represents the latest evolution of that prototype. So it was only
fitting that both Garnett and Bosh, from floor seats at opposite ends of the
court, watched Jackson closely during the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration
Game. At his best, Jackson combines Bosh’s shooting with Garnett’s defensive
prowess.
“He reminds me of Bosh, being able to have a real sweet jump shot and have a lot
of confidence behind that,” Garnett said of Jackson, who has made at least two
three-pointers in 10 games this season. “I remember when Bosh came in and wasn’t
able to put the ball on the ground. (Jackson) can do that.”
Bosh, a seven-time All-Star and two-time NBA champion, also likes what he’s seen
in Jackson so far.
“I wonder if I may have had some influence on him, because I know the guys that
came before me that influenced me,” Bosh said. “Seeing those tall, thin dudes
that face you up and shoot the jumper, I’m like, ‘Whoa, man! I love that.’
Putting the ball on the floor, going out there and making plays on both ends,
yeah, you know, that makes me feel good just watching that.”
Jackson soaks it all up. There’s no shortage of pointers that come his way, be
it from his father, Jaren Jackson Sr., who played a decade in the NBA, veteran
teammates and coaches who surround him daily or a certain legend who has taken a
personal and genuine interest in Jackson’s progress.
Garnett taught Jackson a few tweaks to his game for the second half of the
season. The repertoire included improving Jackson’s footwork on his turnaround
baseline jump shot, keeping the ball high on post moves in the paint and, of
course, the “grasshopper” setup when facing defenders on the perimeter.
“After 15, 20 games, everybody in the league knows what you do,” Garnett
reminded Jackson when they stepped back onto the practice court an hour after
other Grizzlies players had cleared out. “Now that you have the league adjusting
to your game, guess what you have to do? Adjust to something else. You come
through unknown one time. Now, it’s about getting counters, making adjustments.”
Garnett also encouraged Jackson to embrace a vocal leadership role despite his
rookie status. It’s particularly prudent and timely advice, especially as the
Grizzlies consider fast-tracking a rebuild around Jackson.
“If you’re looking around for a leader to emerge and you don’t see him, guess
who it is?” Garnett asked Jackson at one point. “It’s you. But be positive. I
know you feel a certain type of way (about losing). I know it’s in you. Don’t
stop caring.”
Garnett invited coach J.B. Bickerstaff into the film session with Jackson.
Garnett wanted to make sure his message to Jackson aligned with what the
coaching staff was communicating, with all on the same page.
“I pulled Jaren into my office and told him the same thing,” Bickerstaff assured
Garnett.
Then Garnett issued a specific assignment for Jackson.
“Go into the next third quarter, if it’s not going right, and say, ‘Hey man,
what the (expletive) are we doing? I want us to have a great third quarter,
man!'” Garnett demanded, having been informed of the team’s persistent struggles
coming out of halftime. “Say that (expletive) like you mean it. It’ll create
that energy. So what if they look at you crazy. It’s electric. It’s a boost.”
Three days later, after being outscored in the third quarter of 12 consecutive
games, the Grizzlies played that period to a tie Friday against Sacramento and
outscored the Kings overall in the second half but still fell 99-96. A dejected
Jackson remained motionless on the court for several seconds after the final
buzzer. Later in the locker room, the typically spirited Jackson voiced his
frustration as strongly as he had all season.
“I just put a lot into the game,” Jackson said, curtly. “We lost. That’s pretty
much it. When I walk out of here, (eventually) I’ll be alright.”
The next night, on the second end of a back-to-back set, Memphis held off a late
rally to beat the Pacers as Jackson, Conley and Gasol combined for 60 points, 17
assists and 17 rebounds.
“I think we all came together, and we all had a lot of energy,” Jackson said
after the win. “We decided to come focused, and we played for (the win) for
sure.”
It’s clear that some of the pointers from Garnett are gradually paying off for
Jackson. And before he left town last week, Garnett extended a vital reminder to
his mentee during what, coincidentally, happens to be the final days of National
Mentoring Month.
“Know that I’m just a phone call away,” Garnett assured. “It ain’t nothing but a
flight to get here. Call me. I can meet y’all on the road. I’m hoping to come
back at the end of the year, too.”
Jackson has since reflected on the biggest lessons he learned from Garnett’s
latest check-in.
“The film work was important, for sure,” Jackson said. “You can get much easier
shots just by staying patient and getting to what you want, not letting the
defense dictate what you want.”
Jackson took a step or two, then turned and spoke up again.
“And, yeah, the grasshopper,” he said, smiling. “It’s how you open up to get to
your shot.”
It’s also how you blossom after learning from one of the best to ever do it.
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Memphis
Grizzlies. All opinions expressed by Michael Wallace are solely his own and do
not reflect the opinions of the Memphis Grizzlies or its Basketball Operations
staff, owners, parent companies, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known
to the Memphis Grizzlies and he has no special access to information beyond the
access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the
media.
Player: Kevin Garnett
Media Content:
https://www.nba.com/grizzlies/news/grind-city-media/mikecheck-garnetts-grasshoppe
r-grizzlies-rookie-jaren-jackson-jr-applying-lessons-nba-legends-latest-190128
Media Keywords: NBA, Sports, Memphis Grizzlies, Kevin Garnett, Memphis Grizzlies
Media Thumbnail:
https://www.nba.com/grizzlies/sites/grizzlies/files/190128-kevin-garnett-jaren-ja
ckson-film-1554×884.jpg
Taxonomy: MikeCheck, Grind City Media, Michael Wallace
Story Link:
https://www.nba.com/grizzlies/news/grind-city-media/mikecheck-garnetts-grasshoppe
r-grizzlies-rookie-jaren-jackson-jr-applying-lessons-nba-legends-latest-190128
