Jaren Jackson Jr. Scorekeeping Stats Controversy, Explained

On Saturday morning around 4 a.m. ET, a Reddit user posted anonymously under the handle AdMassive6666 to the NBA sub-Reddit, stating that the Memphis Grizzlies scorekeepers were posting “fraudulent numbers” regarding Defensive Player of the Year contender Jaren Jackson Jr.

Jackson was -210 to win DPOY at one book earlier this week and the consensus odds-on favorite across the board.

The post alleges that the home scorekeepers are adding a significant number of blocks and steals in an effort to boost Jackson’s chances at DPOY.

The post, which has 42,600 likes, is making the rounds at the top of Reddit as of this writing, and picked up traction on Twitter, listed seven discrete examples of stat padding in favor of Jackson.

The story created an immediate stir, and some books actually did not have Defensive Player of the Year on the board on Saturday morning. When the odds returned, Jackson had moved to +110 from an average -115 range.

Then, the pushback to the idea of a conspiracy began in earnest.

Why There Is No Conspiracy With Jaren Jackson Jr.'s Stats

The most important piece of info is that, ultimately, the decisions on individual stats are audited in real-time by the NBA, not anyone affiliated with the home team.

So any potential implicit bias or agenda by the Grizzlies’ scorekeeping team (or that of any organization) doesn’t actually matter.

Action Network’s Darren Rovell received this statement from Tim Frank, Senior VP of League Operations Communications:

There have been times when, for whatever reason, controversy arose over various stat adjustments or non-adjustments — we've written about corrections for stars like Nikola Jokic, James Harden and Chris Paul that had caused a stir online — but they are also incredibly routine.

The league's presence as an independent auditor makes it difficult for this story to hold up factually.

However, there is the question of whether the perception of impropriety, given by the story on Twitter and in NBA discussions, could influence voters. Will voters be reluctant to vote for Jackson under the shadow of an alleged, if debunked, conspiracy?

Meanwhile, more evidence came across on social media that this likely is not an explosive revelation of conspiracy and instead that most of the stats in question were attributed accurately.

A Twitter user who claims to have worked as an official scorekeeper for a short time for the Warriors posted this thread:

Kevin O’Connor of the Ringer posted this video that aligns with the above, finding only three blocks incorrectly attributed at home:

By the time this post was finished writing, Jackson moved back to -110 at several US books.

We’ll update with further developments if warranted from the NBA or the Grizzlies, but if you’re holding a Jackson Defensive Player of the Year ticket, you should probably not use it for kindling just yet.