The Memphis Grizzlies are in the thick of a challenging stretch. With the trade deadline behind them and a roster battered by injuries, they’ve been forced to get creative with their lineups. That’s how rookie Jahmai Mashack - a 6-foot-3 guard by trade - found himself logging minutes at center in an NBA game.
Yes, center.
In Friday’s 135-115 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Mashack came off the bench and gave the Grizzlies 20 minutes of high-energy, position-defying basketball. His stat line - five points, one rebound, one assist, and three steals - doesn’t jump off the page, but the context makes it impressive. He was battling in the paint, switching onto bigger bodies, and doing the dirty work typically reserved for guys nearly a foot taller and 50 pounds heavier.
This isn’t entirely new territory for Mashack. Back at Tennessee, he occasionally filled in as a small-ball five.
But doing it in the SEC and doing it in the NBA are two very different things. Still, the rookie isn’t backing down from the challenge - in fact, he’s embracing it.
“It’s different. It’s definitely different,” Mashack told Grind City Media’s Michael Wallace.
“At Tennessee, it was less screening when I was at the five. Over here, it’s a lot more screening, rolling, making sure I’m getting guys open, trying to facilitate.”
That’s the learning curve of the NBA - the speed, the spacing, the physicality. And Mashack’s being asked to navigate it all while playing out of position in just his first two games at the top level.
But he’s not making excuses. Instead, he’s leaning into the opportunity.
“I want to be able to do that to the best of my ability,” he said. “That’s one of my main things - being multi-positional, especially on the defensive end, but also on offense being able to do multiple things.”
That kind of versatility is rare, and it’s exactly what can keep a player like Mashack on an NBA roster. On a two-way contract, he’s been splitting time between the Grizzlies and their G-League affiliate, where he’s primarily played as a point guard. Now, he’s being trusted to guard fives, set screens, and bring energy in the paint - all while still figuring out how to make his mark in the league.
“I definitely take it as a compliment that they trust me to be able to be in that position,” Mashack said. “I think that just makes me even more of a rare player - that I can do stuff at the one that I’ve been playing this whole season in the G-League, and also going to the five if I have to, like I did today.”
That’s the kind of mindset you want from a young player trying to carve out a role. Confidence without ego.
Willingness to do the dirty work. A commitment to being the guy who can plug in anywhere.
Mashack and the Grizzlies will get another shot at Portland on Saturday night. It’s a back-to-back matchup that could offer more minutes - and more mismatches - for the rookie to navigate. And while the scoreboard didn’t go their way Friday night, the Grizzlies are clearly learning something valuable about one of their newest additions.
Jahmai Mashack may not fit the traditional mold of an NBA center. But in today’s league, where versatility is king and rosters are stretched thin, he’s showing that sometimes, the best position is simply “available.”