Josh Jackson

The former No. 4 overall pick is suiting up in Memphis after two disappointing seasons with Phoenix. The Grizzlies didn't give up much to acquire Jackson, and he's a low-risk, high-upside developmental player for a rebuilding franchise. After an unremarkable rookie campaign, Jackson's production decreased in points, rebounds, steals and field goal percentage as a sophomore. But his modest three-point shooting percentage (32.4), was actually an improvement on a pedestrian three-point shooting percentage in 2017 (26.3), and he improved his free-throw percentage to 67.1. Despite the decline in production, there is room for optimism with Jackson's development. He played just 25.4 minutes per game last season, but he averaged 16.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.3 combined blocks/steals per 36 minutes. If he can improve his shooting, Jackson could be a quality contributor for the Grizzlies. However, his role with Memphis is not yet clear. Jackson will likely come off the bench behind Kyle Anderson and Andre Iguodala, though he could see a significant bump in playing time if Iguodala is bought out and signs with a new team.

Jackson had a solid, but not spectacular rookie campaign in Phoenix after being selected with the fourth overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft. He played in 77 games, including 35 starts, and averaged 13.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steal across 25.4 minutes. Struggles with his efficiency was really the biggest concern, as Jackson shot just 41.7 percent from the field, 26.3 percent from deep and 63.4 percent from the free-throw line. His shot is clearly a work in progress, though the hope is that it's at least slightly improved after having a full offseason to work with the coaching staff. Looking forward to the upcoming season, Jackson should slot into the backup small forward slot to T.J. Warren once again, but the Suns will likely look to get their youngster a few more minutes per game after a strong finish to last season -- in his final 12 showings in 2017-18, Jackson averaged 21.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.0 steals across 34.5 minutes. While the additions of Trevor Ariza and first-round draft pick Mikal Bridges pose a few hurdles to get over for big minutes, Jackson is still a candidate to see added run considering his upside and flashes of brilliance last year. If he improves as expected, Jackson should flirt with top-100 value and makes for an intriguing mid-to-late round pick in most standard drafts. Of course, Fantasy owners will have to prepare to deal with the repercussions of his efficiency woes.

Jackson, a top prospect in the high school class of 2016, didn’t disappoint during his lone year at Kansas last season. The 6-foot-8 forward posted 16.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.1 blocks across 30.8 minutes per game. He also shot 51.3 percent from the field and went 34-of-90 (37.8 percent) from beyond the arc. His free-throw shooting was surprisingly bad, however, as he hit just 56.6 percent of his looks from the charity stripe. Regardless, his top-flight athleticism and potential as an elite two-way player caught the Suns’ attention, and he’ll join the organization’s young core after being drafted with the fourth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. While the coaching staff in Phoenix has their work cut out for them trying to find significant minutes for all their young players, Jackson has a strong possibility of being the starting small forward when the season tips off, meaning he could be looking at a 30-plus minute per game workload. He also has the ability to play three positions, so even if he isn’t the starting small forward, he could fill in as a pseudo-utility guy off the pine. While there are certainly safer options than drafting a rookie in Fantasy, Jackson’s upside as a player and his projected workload give him potential as a top-20 small forward.