Jordan Clarkson Position

We’re deep in the midst of a very entertaining NBA season and while there’s much intrigue in the league and some trade rumors we should discuss, let’s stop here for something important:

An And1-ish dribbling move that ends a defender so badly the guy who made it can barely even finish what he’s doing.

Jordan Clarkson was on fire vs. The Sixers on Monday, netting 40 points with an assist and two steals in 29 minutes off the bench. To say he was feeling it might be an understatement. Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder earned the head coach position for Team James, as he will face off against Doc Rivers and Team Durant on March 7. He will be coaching his first All-Star game, so.

The perpetrator here is Jordan Clarkson, of the league’s best team (so far), the Utah Jazz. The victim is Orlando’s Michael Carter-Williams. This action takes place in what would become a 124-109 Utah win.

Warning: If you’ve ever been this overmatched on a playground court, watching this move could resurrect some rough memories.

Let’s isolate a few frames here.

Everything looks OK here, right? MCW has good position and has denied a few pushes by Clarkson already. He’s feeling OK. He can do this.

This is the moment everything changes. Clarkson is about plant his left foot and push back into a spin move, only Carter Williams has no idea and continues pushing his momentum to his right.

Oh. Oh no. Just crumpled.

The pain.

At this point Clarkson is so shocked by what has happened that he forgets how to play basketball. Or maybe he spun himself into confusion? Hard to say. But instead of just gliding to the completely unguarded net for a lovely lay-in flourish, he does whatever this is.

The camera picked up a flash at exactly this moment, and that’s fitting. That’s good. Because this moment in time is art. Everyone on the court looks slightly bewildered in their own specific way. Clarkson continues to defy all conventions of how to put a basketball through a hoop.

This face is part brag, part relief.

Jordan Clarkson Position Card

NBA Comparison: Michael Carter-Williams

Strengths: Quick guard with good size who has displayed point guard ability … Ran point the majority of the time during his lone season at Missouri … Has a strong handle and displays solid vision … Has the ability to post up smaller players and still has quickness to create off of the dribble … Athleticism also allows him to take advantage of bigger defenders, can shoot over them off of the bounce or take them to the basket … Can score from all three levels and is able to create his own offense … Gets low on both ends of the court, moves quite fluidly … His lateral quickness and size gives him potential as a defender, could be versatile guarding the perimeter … Excels at pulling up off of the dribble, giving him the potential to develop a floater as well as spot up ability … Got to the foul line fairly often, shooting 83.1% from the stripe, which would lead many to believe he has a lot of potential from midrange … Has displayed some outside shooting ability. He can be streaky in a good way at times … Used to playing big minutes, and is in excellent condition … Really good body control, use it to create space for opportunities and finishes well around the basket… Decent rebounder given his position, aggressive around the ball … Provides versatility at the guard spot, size and length to defend multiple positions …

Weaknesses: Struggled shooting from the outside this past season, only shot 28.1% from 3PT range … Move to the point was not a flawless transition, struggled running the team and not a natural distributor … Did not end the season strongly when his team was fighting for a possible NCAA tournament spot, shot under 40% from the field in 8 of his last 9 games … Going to his left is not a strong suit, needs work on his off-hand … Committed a lot of turnovers, his assist to turnover ratio is not ideal for a PG prospect … His defensive awareness is still in raw stages, despite his physical ability and athletic awareness, was not statistically efficient on that end of the floor … Still needs to add strength, has trouble with physical defense which can affect him near the rim … Despite his ability to drive and penetrate, was not the most prolific finisher close to the basket … Shot selection can use some work, which is where being streaky can work against him … Still a bit of a hitch in his shot, needs to iron out his mechanics … Left hand needs work, gets into trouble when being forced to his weak side … With the ball in his hands so often at Missouri, there may be an adjustment to playing off of the ball, working as a cutter, though he certainly has an ability to improve in this aspect …

Notes: Played first two seasons for Tulsa before transferring to Missouri, where he sat out the 2012-13 season before being eligible … Measured 6’4.5” (in shoes) 184 lbs with a, 6’7.5 wingspan at the 2012 Kevin Durant Skills Academy … Mother is of Filipina descent, might be eligible to play internationally for the Philippines … Named to the 2014 All-SEC 2nd Team as a junior, with averages of 17.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg and 3.4 apg … Adjusted from playing the wing in high school and at Tulsa to being given primary handler duties at Missouri … While the experience as a PG makes him more intriguing, will more than likely be best off of penetration and his driving ability … His draft range is fairly wide, with the possibility of going as high as the mid first round or even early in the 2nd, though is one of the more intriguing combo guards in that range of the 2014 Draft …

Michael Visenberg 5/10/14

Related News

Jordan Clarkson Stats

• Tulsa transfer eyes MU’s starting point guard position – The Kansas City Star/Terez A. Paylor: 08/26/2013
• New point guard ready to star for Missouri basketball – Columbia Missourian/Ryan Hood: 10/02/2013
• Backcourt possibilities excite Haith – St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Dave Matter: 10/02/2013
• Transfer Jordan Clarkson finally ready to lead – The Maneater/Matt Muenzberg: 10/09/2013
• Newcomers change dynamics for Haith’s third team – St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Dave Matter: 10/16/2013
• Unbeaten Missouri poses big road test for WVU – West Virginia MetroNews/Allan Taylor: 12/05/2013
• Missouri tops West Virginia in Big 12/SEC Challenge – USA Today: 12/06/2013
• Mizzou storms back in second half for 80-71 victory over No. 18 UCLA – The Kansas City Star/Geoffrey Calvert: 12/08/2013
• Tigers fight back against Bruins, extend home-court winning streak – Columbia Daily Tribune/Steve Walentik: 12/08/2013
• Jabari Brown’s heroics not enough for Mizzou in 84-79 loss to Kentucky – St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Dave Matter: 02/02/2014

Jordan Clarkson Position Stats

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