Every June, the NBA Draft makes dreams come true for 60 young basketball players (it ends up being less depending on how many choose not to sign or fail to make the roster). The Memphis Grizzlies made that dream happen for two players in last June’s draft.
Memphis selected UCLA shooting guard, Jordan Adams with their first-round pick and Tennessee power forward Jarnell Stokes was acquired in a draft day trade with the Utah Jazz (he was Utah’s second-round pick). Both were considered raw prospects that while talented, may take some time to develop.
Adams is a 6-foot-5 shooting guard that projects as a spot-up shooter in the NBA, though in college he was more of a do-everything scorer. His shooting tended to be streaky in college, but finding consistency with his shot is his key to sticking as an NBA player.
During his sophomore year at UCLA, he shot 48.5 percent from the field, and 35.6 from outside, while leading the Bruins in scoring with 17.4 points per game.
Stokes is an undersized power forward out of Tennessee. The Memphis native steadily improved throughout his college career, with his junior season being his best. Stokes led Tennessee in rebounding, posting 15.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per game on 53.1 percent shooting during his last season in Knoxville.
He is a bruising big man that perfectly embodies the grit and grind philosophy preached in Memphis. He is not going to wow you with his height or athleticism, however. Stokes is listed at 6 feet 9 inches, but that may be a bit generous.
Despite his lack of height, he still has a 7-foot-1 wingspan and he is a sturdy 263 pounds. Stokes is a physical specimen on the court even without being the type of player that throws down high-flying dunks. He uses his strength and toughness under the basket to relentlessly attack the rim and gobble up rebounds. Rebounding was clearly his best attribute during his college.
His 19.2 percent rebounding percentage led the SEC last season, but as is always the case with young players, there is no guarantee that his skills will translate to the NBA.
The Grizzlies had a set rotation in place when Adams and Stokes were acquired, so there was a question about whether or not Dave Joerger would be able to find playing time for these rookies this season.
Those concerns have been realized so far this season; Stokes and Adams have struggled to find the court through the first 35 games. They both have shuttled back and forth between Iowa Energy in the D-League and the Grizzlies without being allowed to get into a normal playing rhythm.
The D-League stint seemed to be a positive for both players. In seven games with the Iowa Energy, Adams has 18 points per game on 36.4 percent shooting from outside, while Stokes has 13 points and 7.3 rebounds per game on 57.7 percent shooting in only five games played.
They are currently back with Memphis, and Stokes even got his first career NBA start against the New York Knicks. With Zach Randolph still battling a knee injury, there is an opportunity to throw Stokes into the fire and see if he can develop his game against NBA competition.
Still, he only played 17 minutes, scoring three points and grabbing one rebound. After that performance against the Knicks, Stokes had 14 games played for Memphis, averaging 2.3 points and 1.4 rebounds in only 5.9 minutes per game. He got his second consecutive start Wednesday night against the Atlanta Hawks, but once again was limited.
He played four minutes and failed to record a single statistic.
Adams has played even less. In nine games with the Grizzlies, he is averaging 3.1 points while shooting 42.9 percent from three-point range. His last appearance was late in the Monday night blowout against the Knicks. It was a rough showing for the youngster, he shot 0-for-5 from the floor and only tallied one point in 10 minutes played.
I can imagine it’s difficult to maintain a reliable jump shot when your playing time is so sparse.
Dave Joerger has proven through his lineup choices that he prefers the reliability of veteran players rather than experimenting with rookies, especially when his team is considered a championship contender in the Western Conference. It’s hard to fault him.
With a Mike Conley, Beno Udrih, Tony Allen, Courtney Lee, Vince Carter, Quincy Pondexter, and Tayshaun Prince guard rotation there just aren’t very many minutes for Adams to come by.
At power forward, Jon Leuer has been stable if unspectacular in his reserve role, but if Joerger values continuity, he may not want to insert Stokes and risk upsetting the chemistry that has led to a 25-9 start.
That being said, would it not make more sense to send Adams and Stokes back to the D-League on a more permanent basis once Zach Randolph returns? This would help them to get regular playing time without the risk of their inexperience hurting the Grizzlies playoff push.
Leaving them to rot on the bench or only play in garbage time, only limits their development and hurts their value as long-term assets.