Jaylen Wells (born August 26, 2003) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Sonoma State Seawolves The Sonoma State Seawolves are the athletic teams that represent Sonoma State University, located in Rohnert Park, California, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The Seawolves compete as members of the California Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

and the

Washington State Cougars The Washington State Cougars (known informally as the Cougs) are the sport, athletic teams that represent Washington State University. Located in Pullman, Washington, WSU is a member of the Pac-12 Conference in NCAA Division I. The athletic pr ...

Early life and high school career

Wells grew up in

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

and attended

Folsom High School Folsom High School is a public secondary school in the Western United States, located in Folsom, California, a suburb east of Sacramento. Established in 1922, it is a part of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District. School history The first ...

. As a senior, he averaged 26.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He was named the area Player of the Year by ''

The Sacramento Bee ''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...

''. Wells committed to play

at Division II

Sonoma State University Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Sonoma County, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Sonoma State offers 92 bachelor's degree programs, 19 master's de ...

College career

Wells began his college basketball career playing for the

. He averaged 12.6 points per game during his freshman season. He was named the

California Collegiate Athletic Association The California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) is a List of NCAA conferences, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division II, Division II level. All of its current m ...

Player of the Year after averaging 22.4 points per game during his sophomore campaign. After the season, he entered the

NCAA transfer portal The NCAA transfer portal is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) application, database, and compliance tool created to manage and facilitate the process for student athletes seeking to transfer between member institutions. It is i ...

. Wells transferred to

Washington State Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

and entered his junior season as the Cougars' starting

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three, is one of the five Basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than Power forward (basketball), power forwards and Cent ...

. He averaged 12.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. After the season, Wells declared for the

2024 NBA draft The 2024 NBA draft was the 78th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft. Unlike recent years, the 2024 draft took place over two nights. This was the first NBA draft to be held on multiple nights since the draft ...

while retaining his college eligibility. He later also re-entered the transfer portal. Wells later decided to remain in the draft.

Professional career

Memphis Grizzlies (2024–present)

On June 27, 2024, Wells was selected with the 39th overall pick by the

in the

; on July 6, he signed with the Grizzlies. On October 23, 2024, Wells made his NBA debut, playing in a 126–124 victory over the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

in the season opener. On October 31, Wells made his first career start against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

where he scored a then career-high 16 points. On December 3, Wells was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for games played in October/November. It marks the 16th time a

player has won the honor. In 20 games, Wells averaged 12.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 25 minutes while shooting over 45 percent from the court. On April 8, 2025, Wells suffered a broken right wrist in a game against the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

, ending his rookie season. The injury came just days before the postseason that the Grizzlies had recently clinched. His 10.4 points per game ranked fourth among eligible rookies that season.

Career statistics

NBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 79 , , 74 , , 25.9 , , .425 , , .352 , , .822 , , 3.4 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , .1 , , 10.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 79 , , 74 , , 25.9 , , .425 , , .352 , , .822 , , 3.4 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , .1 , , 10.4

College

NCAA Division II

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;", Sonoma State , 25 , , 21 , , 30.6 , , .406 , , .263 , , .716 , , 5.8 , , 1.7 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 12.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2022–23 , style="text-align:left;", Sonoma State , 30 , , 30 , , 36.8 , , .517 , , .438 , , .861 , , 8.7 , , 2.6 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , 22.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 55 , , 51 , , 34.0 , , .476 , , .355 , , .808 , , 7.4 , , 2.2 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , 17.9

NCAA Division I

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 20 , , 29.2 , , .436 , , .417 , , .814 , , 4.6 , , 1.2 , , .5 , , .2 , , 12.6

References

External links

Washington State Cougars bioSonoma State Seawolves bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Jaylen 2003 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Sacramento, California Memphis Grizzlies draft picks Memphis Grizzlies players Small forwards Sonoma State Seawolves men's basketball players Washington State Cougars men's basketball players