The Memphis Grizzlies have had an unfortunate run with injuries in recent seasons, and are currently without star point guard Ja Morant due to injury. While Jaren Jackson Jr. recently made his return, the Grizzlies are also without Zach Edey and Brandon Clarke due to injury. The most recent setback for the Grizzlies came in the form of Scotty Pippen Jr. who will be sidelined indefinitely due to a toe injury, the team announced on Saturday.
The Grizzlies announced that Scotty Pippen Jr. will undergo a procedure to address discomfort in his left big toe and a timeline for his potential return will be updated following the procedure. Pippen’s absence is a big blow for a team that is already missing its starting point guard. Pippen has emerged in recent seasons as a capable NBA point guard.
For a Grizzlies team that has had their injury woes, Pippen was a model of durability last season, appearing in a career-high 79 games with 21 starts at a little over 21 minutes per game. He averaged 9.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals with splits of 48 percent shooting from the field, 39.7 percent shooting from the three-point line and 71.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Pippen was entering his third season with the Grizzlies after signing with the team ahead of the 2023-24 season. He was initially signed to a two-way contract that year, but had that converted to a standard deal before the 2024-25 season.
The son of Hall of Famer and NBA legend Scottie Pippen, the younger Pippen began his NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2022-23 also on a two-way contract. Pippen went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft after three seasons of college basketball at Vanderbilt. He played only sparingly for the Lakers as a rookie, and was cut during the following year’s training camp.
With both Morant and Pippen sidelined, that likely opens up more opportunity at guard for Cam Spencer and Javon Small. Spencer had his two-way contract from last season converted to a standard deal, and Small signed a two-way contract after being selected with the No. 48 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
