Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. I write about what’s happening in the NBA daily, even when COVID has ravaged the league.
Jordan Clarkson is having a hell of a season for the Jazz.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Leon Halip/Getty Images.)
Jordan Clarkson seems to be in the best situation of his NBA career. And he has flourished.
In December of 2019, the Utah Jazz were desperate to get some bench scoring so they dealt for the former Laker. After the trade was made, the Jazz would go on to win 10 straight and 14 of 15 overall. Clarkson was instrumental in his role as a Sixth Man.
Now Clarkson has always been a potent scorer but when you play for bad teams, it looks like number-chasing. Clarkson was able to play with LeBron James and go on that Finals run in 2018 but he wasn’t effective as he was in the regular season. It seems like he’s gotten super comfortable with the Jazz, though. Utah wanted bench scoring and Clarkson finally has a situation where he can just play ball instead of trying to do too much.
As a result, he’s averaging 17.5 points in 25 minutes per game. Yes, his defense still is pretty porous but the rest of the team is KNOWN for defense so he can get covered on that end. He’s also shooting a career-best .500 from the field and .429 from three. Again, it’s quite something when the team expects you to do a role that you’ve always been good at.
And he was great in their win over their rival, Denver. Clarkson scored 23 to lead the Jazz in a close win over the Nuggets. He helped keep the Jazz ahead in the 4th quarter with a big 3 halfway through. Clarkson has been incredibly consistent this season and this might be the season where he wins the Sixth Man of the Year award. Overall, the Jazz have won five in a row and are trying their best to keep up with the L.A. teams.
Clarkson is going to have to keep it up for the Jazz to have a chance. They’ve entered the Top 10 in offensive rating (112.2 points per 100 possessions). And more importantly for Utah, they’ve jumped from 23rd last season to 13th in bench scoring. And they have to thank Clarkson for that volume scoring.
(Also, yay, Filipino basketball players in the NBA!)
Bullet Passes
The wacky season continues as the Knicks beat the Celtics (THUMPED them) and the Bulls beat the Mavericks. Are you guys happy with your parity?
The Celtics scored 75 points in their homage to 90s basketball.
And, holy, was Luka Doncic something else in that loss against the Mavs. 36-16-15!
De’Aaron Fox had an explosive game against the Pelicans: 43 points, 13 dimes, and four steals.
Zion Williamson himself went for 31 points in 13-for-15 shooting. That is scorching.
The Clippers are currently shooting 44 percent from three as a team. The record for highest three-point percentage for a regular season is .428 by the Charlotte Hornets in 1996-97.
Such a mean Paul George throwdown:
PAUL GEORGE OH MY. pic.twitter.com/oENbzIQN0o
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 18, 2021
Zion nearly erased Chimezie Metu‘s existence:
ZION WITH THE POSTER 🔥 pic.twitter.com/e5N09Dln7O
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 18, 2021
NBA Scoreboard
Jan. 17, 2021
Watch This Play
But the play I’ll go with is Luka making the nice behind-the-back dish to Willie Cauley-Stein AFTER he made a behind-the-back dribble.
LUKA. MAGIC. pic.twitter.com/cgKdeI0epl
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) January 17, 2021
If you’re going to lose, lose in style.
Everyone, please take care of yourselves during this pandemic. And that goes for everyone involved with the NBA as well.
You can find Rey-Rey on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
You can also check out Rey-Rey’s podcast, Rey-Rey Is Fundamental, for more basketball content and, really, whatever else.