Grizzlies’ Rookie Has Seen Near-Perfect Start to Career

The beginning of a career in the NBA can be a daunting task for most, to the point some organizations hold their rookies out of the first few games.

That hasn’t been the case for Grizzlies’ rookie Cedric Coward, who’s not only played in his team’s first three games, but starred alongside Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.

It wasn’t long ago that Coward played in Division III basketball, starring for Willamette University. He then transferred to Eastern Washington for two seasons in the Big Sky Conference, before a six-game stint at Washington State that ended in injury.

He eventually became the No. 11 pick at the NBA Draft, largely due to his unique measurements — 6-foot-5 with a 7-foot-2 wingspan — as well as his play-style, with stingy defense and plenty of triples.

Coward then missed out on Summer League due to the same injury, but was able to take the floor for Memphis in the preseason.

In his first official regular season game, Coward was perfect. No, really. He scored a bench-high 14 points without missing a single field goal or free throw, going 5-for-5 and 4-for-4 in finishing as a team-high +24 in the six-point win.

His second game wasn’t as spotless, but he still managed a fine line despite the blowout loss: 16 points on 56% shooting, with two assists and two steals.

His magnum opus came in the third game, where the Grizzlies were able to route an undermanned Pacers team. He scored what ended up far-and-away as a team-high 27 points, doing so on a hyper-efficient 9-for-13 shooting. He went 6-for-6 from beyond the arc, finishing with a +36 plus-minus.