MEMPHIS – At one stage years ago, a completely different path was strongly considered.
“When you’re young and trying to figure things out, you kind of want to go your own way,” J.B. Bickerstaff said of when his career goals shifted. “There was some thought of going to medical school and being a doctor. But that changed. And by high school, I knew I wanted to be a coach. I knew coaching basketball was for me.”
Bickerstaff now pushes forward in his first season as a fulltime NBA head coach. His first home opener comes Friday, when the Grizzlies look to regroup from a disappointing season debut in Wednesday’s 111-83 loss at Indiana.
After two stints in an interim role, including when he finished out last season for the Grizzlies following David Fizdale’s dismissal in November, Bickerstaff is able to chart his own course from the outset of a season. Reaching this point probably wouldn’t have been possible without standing on the shoulders of his father and NBA lifer Bernie Bickerstaff, who has spent four decades as a league executive or coach.
“For the past 10 years, I’d say, we’ve talked or texted every day – even if it’s just for a couple of minutes,” Bickerstaff said of his father. “I’m not where I am as a man, father or coach without him.”
The Bickerstaff story is not unique on a Grizzlies’ team stocked with high-profile familial bonds. It’s essentially a legacy play for the franchise. Motivations, missions and goals run much deeper than the outcome of the games. And when Bickerstaff’s new multi-year deal was announced in the offseason, he vowed everyone on the team would be playing for something bigger than themselves.
There was some thought of going to medical school and being a doctor. But that changed. And by high school, I knew I wanted to be a coach. I knew coaching basketball was for me.
J.B. Bickerstaff
In many ways, that’s been the case all along for some. Much like Bickerstaff, Mike Conley Jr., Marc Gasol and Jaren Jackson Jr. have approached this season carrying a familiar family name and legacy to new heights.
Mike Conley Jr poses with father Mike Conley Sr after an AAU game. Photo courtesy of Conley Family Trust.
Conley, 31, is driven to regain his peak form after returning from January’s season-ending heel surgery. Although he struggled to find a rhythm in Wednesday’s season opener, Conley averaged a team-best 16.5 points and shot 54.5 percent from the field in four preseason games. He wants to redirect the Grizzlies to the playoffs after a tough season left them with a 22-60 record and out of the postseason for the first time in eight years.
Beyond that, Conley is also setting the foundation to achieve a personal goal that dates to his childhood. Ultimately, there’s a 2020 vision. He’s laying the groundwork to potentially put himself in position to follow in his father’s Olympic footsteps. Mike Conley Sr. was one of the world’s top track athletes in the 1980s and early 1990s, having won a gold medal in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and a silver in Los Angeles in 1984 – three years before Conley Jr. was born.
Conley Jr.’s participation in the Team USA minicamp in Las Vegas in July was a step toward making the final roster in two years as the national team secures a spot in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan.
“That’s the dream,” Conley recently said. “To compete in an Olympics and do something my father was able to do many times, that would obviously be a dream come true for me. So that’s what taking advantage of every opportunity is about. It shows I’m committed to USA Basketball. And if it does come down to it … and my name is called, I’ll be ready.”
Jaren Jackson Jr. embraces his father after being selected fourth overall by the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2018 NBA Draft on June 21, 2018 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. Photo by Michelle Farsi / NBAE via Getty Images.
When Jaren Jackson Sr. heard his son’s name called as the fourth overall pick in June’s draft, he knew Jaren Jr. would be ready for the challenges of the NBA after just one season at Michigan State. The Jacksons have embraced their transition. While Jaren Jr. has endured breakthrough moments and growing pains on the court, Jaren Sr. has relocated the family’s support system to Memphis.
Jaren Jr., 19, became the youngest player in franchise history to play in an NBA game when he finished with 10 points, five rebounds, three steals and a block in 25 minutes off the bench against the Pacers. His first NBA game also came on the same Bankers Life Fieldhouse court where he played for state championships while attending high school in suburban Indianapolis.
“It’s been a busy summer for him – from the draft and getting right into it, doing a lot of training and moving from home, where we were in Indiana, to now being in Memphis,” said Jaren Sr., who played for a decade in the NBA and won a championship with the Spurs. “We’re loving Memphis and loving Grit and Grind nation. I’m just excited for the fans here in Memphis to see my son play pro ball.”
There’s still plenty the 6-foot-11 phenom must learn to reach his enormous potential. Jaren Sr. said he’s drawn from both his NBA playing experience under coach Gregg Popovich and lessons while playing in college at Georgetown for legendary coach John Thompson to help Jaren Jr. along the way.
But outside of basketball, there’s a lot of things we still want to accomplish. We’re natural leaders and we find clear paths to the goal, and we adjust on the fly when it’s necessary.
Marc Gasol
In the meantime, Jaren Jr. is benefitting from plenty of Gasol’s tutelage. Jackson may be the future at the post position, but Gasol, 33, is very much entrenched as the franchise anchor.
A three-time NBA All-Star and 2013 league Defensive Player of the Year, Gasol views his own family legacy as one that extends far beyond basketball. That was underscored over the summer when he and older brother Pau Gasol hosted their foundation’s first basketball game in Barcelona to help benefit causes such as the fight against childhood obesity.
Pau Gasol #16 of the San Antonio Spurs and Marc Gasol #33 of the Memphis Grizzlies hug before the game on January 24, 2018 at FedExForum in Memphis, TN. Photo by Joe Murphy / NBAE via Getty Images.
Marc Gasol also made international headlines in August when he participated in rescue mission trips in the Mediterranean to help save migrants lost at sea. Marc and Pau are future Hall of Famers who have already secured their places in NBA history as the only siblings to start in the same All-Star Game.
But Marc Gasol believes the legacy that matters most is one still in the making.
“We’ve been doing this our whole life, and we’ve been consistent with the values we’ve had,” Marc Gasol said of the brothers’ careers. “But outside of basketball, there’s a lot of things we still want to accomplish. We’re natural leaders and we find clear paths to the goal, and we adjust on the fly when it’s necessary. We’re not going to all of a sudden become rocket scientists or try to create something we’re not good at. But we’re definitely going to help people in a lot of different ways.”
Ultimately, Bickerstaff is coaching a team connected by greater causes – both on and off the court. Embracing each other’s story is the first step to sharing in one another’s success. That cuts to the heart of the biggest lesson Bickerstaff applies from his father’s foundational teachings about the game.
“The most important thing is to be honest,” Bickerstaff said. “Guys may not always want to hear the truth, but at the end of the day, they’ll respect you more for it. There’s no reason to play mind games with people. From what he’s taught me, that’s not the true way to motivation. The true way to motivation is to earn guys’ respect and trust, and then they provide a willingness to play for you and compete for you.”
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Memphis Grizzlies. All opinions expressed by Michael Wallace are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Memphis Grizzlies or its Basketball Operations staff, owners, parent companies, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Memphis Grizzlies and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.