SALT LAKE CITY – Despite the NBA’s four-month hiatus, Jordan Clarkson, the newest addition to the Utah Jazz team, feels more connected and comfortable with the team than it was when the season was suspended in March.
Clarkson, who was ceded by the Cleveland Cavaliers to Utah in an exchange that ended the Dante Exum era with Jazz, was an immediate advantage for the missing second unit of Jazz. Scoring 48 combined points off the bench during his first three games was an easy way for him to charm his new teammates, but his casual attitude in good vibes quickly made him a favorite of the team and fans.
“That was all we thought would be in the last three games,” said Donovan Mitchell at the moment, “and he is learning all of this on the fly and is still playing well, and it is difficult to do.”
When the NBA closed on March 11th, Jazz was entering a rut with its rotations, a point of the season that would make everyone feel comfortable, especially a newly added player.
But while things were reaching a peak for the team in terms of chemistry and health, the players were forced into isolation and taken away from the basketball court. Despite the interruption, Clarkson said that the communication helped keep the team’s rhythm, atmosphere and bond intact during the break.
“We ran down to the ground and they welcomed me with open arms,” said Clarkson on Sunday. “We kept in touch all the time, continuing to build.”
In addition to virtual team meetings and trainings, video chats and group lyrics, Clarkson was part of a group of Jazz musicians who gathered in Los Angeles for a set of non-NBA regulated workouts where the players were actually in able to get on the field together.
In videos posted on social media on June 17, Clarkson, Mitchell, Royce O’Neale, Rayjon Tucker and Miye Oni were seen on the field together, preparing for the eventual restart of the NBA season.
“We were sitting in the house a lot, we didn’t see gyms,” said Clarkson. “I still had access to one, but many of us didn’t see other kids, they weren’t able to do anything.”
Although players were able to volunteer individual training at the Jazz practice facility, the NBA had not allowed group training until the teams arrived in Orlando this week. That rule, although followed by teams, was circumvented by many in the league who found ways to be together and work. That short span of time, Clarkson said, was incredibly beneficial.
“Just being able to get out of there, going in a circle, being able to play the game we love, was fantastic,” he said. “We were working, communicating, just trying to get ready for this time, knowing that the NBA season is about to start again.”
That extra communication and time on the pitch led Clarkson to his next challenge: prepare for the remaining eight games of the NBA season and the playoffs with a team that will have to change again due to Bojan Bogdanovic’s injury.
Clarkson knows that losing Bogdanovic is great for Jazz. The Croatian posed a 20 point threat each night and added floor space as one of the league’s best perimeter throws. Jazz coach Quin Snyder will rely on Clarkson to add scoring and mobility to the spin and Clarkson said he’s ready for anything.
“For me, he’s just going there, doing what the coach asks me to do,” he said. “If it’s getting off the bench, if it’s starting, whatever the situation, I feel like I’m ready. The coach has a lot of confidence in me, confidence in many guys, and I know that everyone will take a step forward and we will go back to the game and try to get some victory. “
When Clarkson speaks on July 30 in the NBA’s first game, the back of his shirt will read “Pace”.
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association have agreed on several messages, including Peace, Black Lives Matter, Say Their Names, Vote, and Equality as part of the league’s initiative to promote social justice.
According to a report from The Undefeated, nearly 300 players have chosen to put a message on the back of the shirt.
Clarkson said he chose the word “Peace” because he believes it is the thing people ultimately hope to find through protests and raising public awareness of racial inequality and injustice.
“This fight, Black Lives Matter, everything everyone is fighting for, at the end of the day will cause peace for all of us, being able to feel that equality in all areas and aspects of life,” said Clarkson. “This is why I chose it, this is the message I’m posting.”
