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WATCH: Jaren Jackson Jr. reacts to winning Defensive Player of the Year

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Updated6 hours ago on April 24, 2024

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WATCH Jaren Jackson Jr. of Grizzlies reacts to winning NBA Defensive Player of the Year

Watch Memphis Grizzlies center Jaren Jackson Jr. react to winning the 2022-23 NBA Defensive Player of the Year award. Jackson is the second Memphis player to win the award, joining three-time All-Star Marc Gasol (2012-13).

Jackson is the first DPOY winner to average at least three blocks and one steal in a season since Marcus Camby in 2007-08. In 63 starts, the center also logged career highs of 18.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 6.6 field goals per game.

Per multiple NBA betting sites, the Grizzlies hold eighth-shortest odds to win the championship. Some sportsbooks are giving the Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, and Los Angeles Lakers better odds. Watch Jackson’s reaction below.

Along with averaging 1.0 assist, 1.0 steal, and 28.4 minutes per contest, the Memphis center shot 50.6% from the floor and 35.5% beyond the arc. Not to mention, Jackson held opponents to an NBA-low 46.9% shooting at the rim as the closest defender.

In the Grizzlies’ 128-103 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 12, the center posted a career-high eight blocks in less than 24 minutes as a starter. Shaquille O’Neal and Manute Bol own the all-time record for most blocks in a single game with 15.

Jackson, 23, is also the second-youngest player to win DPOY, trailing just Dwight Howard, who was also 23 back in 2008-09. The Memphis center is officially the third player to win the award while averaging less than 30 minutes per game as well.

Watch Grizzlies star Jaren Jackson Jr. react to winning his first NBA Defensive Player of the Year award

Moreover, the Michigan State product led the NBA in blocks per game, defensive rating (105.3), and block percentage (9.6%). Jaren Jackson Jr. also finished second in blocks (189), ninth in defensive win shares (3.8), and eighth in defensive box plus/minus (2.0).

In the 1984-85 season, Mark Eaton with the Utah Jazz averaged 5.6 blocks per game, the most by a DPOY winner in NBA history. Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart won the award last season after averaging less than a block per game.

Memphis fans have to watch Jackson to see how he performs throughout the rest of this first-round series against Lebron James and the Lakers. In the Grizzlies’ 128-112 loss on Sunday in Game 1, the center amassed 31 points, five boards, four assists, and two blocks.

Additionally, in the Grizzlies’ 138-131 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans on Apr. 5, Jackson scored a season-high 40 points in 41 minutes of action. He finished 13-of-28 (46.4%) shooting from the field and drained three 3-pointers.

Jackson joins Kawhi Leonard and Smart as the only Defensive Player of the Year winners in NBA history to make over 100 3-pointers in a season. Plus, the center is the fourth player to win the award at 23 or younger, joining Howard, Alvin Robertson, and Leonard.

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