Utah Jazz: Revisiting the Jordan Clarkson Trade
Imagine a world where people aren't wearing masks and there's no social distancing and the Jazz are ranked 22nd in offense.
Hard to imagine, right?
Well, that was the reality of December of 2019. At least for Jazz fans. So far the Mike Conley as the "one-piece-away" savior hadn't been working out. On top of that, Conley went out with a hamstring injury on the 17th of the aforementioned month. The Joe Ingles bench experiment was off to a rocky start. So the Jazz looked elsewhere.
On Christmas Eve of 2019 the Jazz pulled the trigger. Here's the details of that trade:
Jazz received:
G Jordan Clarkson
Cavaliers received:
G Dante Exum (now in Houston), 2022 second-round pick (via Spurs), 2023 second-round pick (via Warriors)
Zach Harper of The Athletic, in his instant trade grade reaction, gave the Jazz a "B" and the Cavs an "A-".
With a year removed, let's re-assess.
It's impossible to predict what will become of the second round picks (usually nothing--then again Clarkson was a 2nd-rounder) so let's look at the players.
Dante Exum
Dante Exum has been consistently injured since being drafted 5th overall by the Jazz. The injuries have continued since his departure. He only played 30 games for the Cavs over the past two seasons (compared to 71 for Clarkson with the Jazz). He was included in the blockbuster that sent James Harden to the Nets but has yet to play a minute for the Rockets since the trade. He's expected to return in March but it's unsure how much of a role he'll play in the Rockets rotation.
Jordan Clarkson
Meanwhile, Clarkson is averaging a career high 18.2 ppg (25 ppg per 36 minutes) on the league-leading Jazz. Who are also the only time in the league to currently be ranked top five in offense and defense. It was always clear that Clarkson could score but there was still a stigma of empty stats--could he make meaningful contributions to a winning team? He was a part of the Cavaliers team that made it to the Finals (he's the only current Jazz player with Finals experience) but he shot poorly in the playoffs (23.9 from three--yikes!). Yet, he has responded positively to the go-ahead green light provided by Quin Snyder and the Jazz, while still thriving in their offensive system. Such production has lead him to be the early favorite for the 6th-man of the year award and made him a crucial part of a legitimate championship contender.
In hindsight, for making the trade and resigning him, the Jazz get an A+.
All stats from basketball-reference.com.
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