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With the rehiring of Jordan Clarkson, the Utah Jazz have bought back their core from last season, giving them a good shot at a deep playoff run.
The Utah Jazz re-signed Jordan Clarkson for four years and $ 52 million after making several moves to make sure this was possible. The Jazz got rid of Tony Bradley and Ed Davis in two separate moves to save $ 8.4 million, which was enough to close the deal.
The news broke for ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski at the same time that the news was known that the Jazz had solidified their attack zone with the signing of Derrick Favors. The Jazz marked their free agency checklist very early.
Clarkson came to the Jazz through a trade, giving the Jazz a reliable scoring option off the bench. He played 42 games averaging 15.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.7 steals in 24.7 minutes per game.
Clarkson’s efficiency was crucial for the Utah Jazz
The only player Clarkson cost the Jazz was Dante Exum. While Exum was an excellent ball handler, he was not a good shooter. In fact, he struggled to get consistent playing time during his time with the franchise.
Clarkson came in and from the second game in a Jazz uniform, he was producing at an impressive level. In the first 10 games, Clarkson had five games of 16 or more points off the bench. In his first 12 games, he only failed to reach double digits twice.
The Jazz won the first ten games Clarkson played in. In fact, they were 14-1 in their first 15 games with the franchise. They would finish with a 26-16 record with Clarkson on the team, giving them a 44-28 record, good for sixth place in the Western Conference.
Where Clarkson is an improvement over Exum is that his shooting required a defender to respect him, so that they can’t fool him into helping players like Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic, Mike Conley or Joe Ingles. This allows them to offer a more efficient offense for the Jazz.
Clarkson averaged the third-highest points per game on the Jazz team last season. He was only behind Mitchell and Bogdanovic, who averaged more than 20 points per game. This was a big reason the Jazz needed to re-sign him.
Traditionally, the Jazz have always struggled to score, preferring to rely on their defense to be able to score more than their opponent. With Clarkson on the team, this is changing. They averaged 111.3 points per game, which was enough to rank 18th in the NBA last season.
Last season was the Jazz’s most efficient pitch from the court since the 2008-09 season. It was the best thing they had fired from deep inside. This was possible because the Jazz had four players averaging 15 points per game or more.
With the hiatus shortened between seasons, it will be incredibly important for any team wanting to compete in the playoffs that they be able to start immediately. Having early chemistry could affect whether you manage to be seeded in the playoffs.
By getting Clarkson back, the Jazz return their core from last season, which means they are able to hit the ground running. They should be able to move up to the top seeds, some of the teams above them will certainly go down the rankings.
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