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UVA Basketball Alum Jay Huff Drops Career-High 20 Points in Grizzlies Win

Matt Newton

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Jay Huff is beginning to make it clear that the entire National Basketball Association, including and especially the Los Angeles Lakers, the Washington Wizards, and the Denver Nuggets, have made a grave error in overlooking the former UVA basketball star center. For some reason, the NBA as a whole did not believe that a 7'1" center with a proficient three-point jumper, above-average speed and agility for a player his size, and the ability to throw down thunderous dunks with ease could make it in this league.

After three years spent bouncing between the NBA G League and the Lakers, Wizards, and Nuggets, who gave him varying levels of garbage time chances in the NBA, but never a true opportunity, Jay Huff's big break has finally arrived.

Signed by the Memphis Grizzlies to a two-way contract this offseason, Huff played so well through the first three games of the 2024-2025 NBA season that the Grizzlies decided to convert his two-way deal into Huff's first-career standard NBA contract, a four-year deal inked on October 28th.

Less than a week later, Huff delivered his finest performance yet, knocking down five three-pointers and scoring a career-high 20 points to help the Grizzlies take down the Philadelphia 76ers 124-107 on Saturday in Philly. In just 14 minutes on the floor, Huff posted 20 points, shot 5/7 from three-point range, shot 7/10 from the floor, and recorded five rebounds, one block, and one assist.

So far this season, Huff is averaging 11.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per game and is shooting 61.4% from the floor and 55.6% from three. He ranks ninth in the entire NBA in three-point shooting percentage and is third in the league among players who have attempted at least 25 three-pointers this season.

Huff's previous career-high was a 17-point outing for the Washington Wizards on April 4th, 2023. The Wizards gave Huff his best opportunity from a minutes standpoint, as he averaged 13.6 minutes per game, but he appeared in only seven contests for Washington. That was a year after the Lakers played him in just four games at 5.0 minutes per game as a rookie. Last season, Huff played in 20 games for the then-reigning NBA Champion Denver Nuggets, but he averaged just 2.5 minutes per game in those appearances. None of those teams gave Huff a real opportunity to prove his worth and none decided to bring him back.

Their mistake and, it seems, the Memphis Grizzlies' reward.

The Grizzlies are building a very promising young front court, with Huff joining the likes of Zach Edey, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Santi Aldama. With Ja Morant leading the way at point guard after missing most of last season, things are looking up for the Memphis Grizzlies this season and Jay Huff appears to be poised to have a big role in what should be a breakout year for the former Wahoo.

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Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.