"He’s Got A Lot Of Pride" | Jordan Clarkson Shoots His Way Into Utah History

Whenever Jordan Clarkson dribbles the ball up the court, you can feel the crowd at Vivint Arena hold its breath. The entire crowd knows that greatness is coming, and they wait in anticipation for Clarkson to unveil it. 

Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t — but it’s always special. Regardless of the outcome, very few players in the NBA can capture an entire arena, but Clarkson is one of them.

So with 10:10 left in the fourth quarter of Monday’s game against Houston, Clarkson did just that. While his three-pointer from the left-wing didn’t do much regarding the overall outcome — it put the Jazz up by 22 — it did a lot when it comes to the history of the Jazz. 

That was Clarkson’s 439th made three-pointer in a Utah uniform, making him No. 10 all-time in Jazz history. 

And with that, Jordan Clarkson moves into 10th all-time Jazz history for threes #TakeNote | @jordanclarksons pic.twitter.com/LmgREZ9Q1e

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 15, 2022

Now in his eighth season in the league, Clarkson has emerged from a second-round pick to one of the premier bench players in the league. He’s considered lightning in a bottle and one of the best ball-handlers in the NBA, capable of getting any shot he wants. 

It’s why he’s such a vital piece of Utah’s puzzle to bring Salt Lake City its first title. 

“I feel like I’ve been saying it for a long time, but his care factor, his will, and he’s got a lot of pride, he wants to win,” head coach Quin Snyder said of Clarkson. “He can really score but he wants to win more than he wants to score. There is a competitiveness where sometimes if you’re not making shots you figure out other ways to impact the game.”

But his career didn’t start that way.

After three and a half years with the Lakers, who traded for him on draft night, Clarkson was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers before the 2018 trade deadline. 

While with the Cavaliers, Clarkson began to show his potential by upping his stats across all categories. With the Cavs struggling at the bottom of the standings, Clarkson became a valuable trade chip — making the Jazz ideal candidates. 

In a trade for Dante Exum and some picks, Clarkson came to the snowy mountains of Utah on Christmas Eve 2019 — and he’s been a gift ever since that day. 

Clarkson is averaging 16.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 26 minutes per game since joining the Jazz, culminating in winning the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award last season. 

| “The biggest thing for me, I love my teammates, bro. This is, like, the best group of guys I’ve ever been around hooping and it makes me love coming to work.”#WalkoffInterview | @lhmauto pic.twitter.com/l0W7xfmj4K

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) November 5, 2021

It’s unknown where Clarkson’s career will go moving forward, but he will always be beloved in Utah — and you can be sure that he’ll continue to climb the ranks of Jazz history.

Utah Top-10 Three-Pointers
1.) Joe Ingles — 1,071
2.) Donovan Mitchell — 869
3.) John Stockton — 845
4.) Gordon Hayward — 689
5.) Bryon Russell — 540
6.) Darrell Griffith — 530
7.) Mehmet Okur — 517
8.) Deron Williams — 511
9.) Bojan Bogdanovic — 503
10.) Jordan Clarkson — 439