The Memphis Grizzlies continue to struggle at the start of the 2023-24 NBA season. The team lost Friday night’s In-Season Tournament game against the Utah Jazz, 127-121, to fall to 1-8 on the year. They’re still searching for their first win at home during the campaign, and between long-term injuries and the suspension to Ja Morant, it’s hard to see help coming any time soon.
Friday featured things boiling over a bit. During the third quarter, Jaren Jackson Jr. played through some contact and scored but did not get a call. While expressing some frustration, Jackson received a pair of technical fouls, which led to his night coming to an early end.
This moment, along with a pretty stark free throw disparity, came up in Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins’ postgame press conference. Jenkins did not mince his words, as he called the officiating “f*ckin’ atrocious,” made it a point to defend Jackson, and stressed that he understands the league office is not going to be happy about how he’s going about expressing his frustration.
“Our guys are competing their tails off, and we gotta play better,” Jenkins said. “We gotta coach better, we gotta play better. But I don’t get tonight whatsoever.”
In particular, Jenkins pointed out his frustration between the interactions between his team and the officials, which led to him using the words “stern, nothing, stonewall, ignoring.”