Jordan Clarkson Campaigns For All-Star Teammates, Sixth Man Award
Feb 12, 2021, 12:53 PM
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) comes off the court with praise from Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (45) in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019. (Courtesy of Deseret News)
(Courtesy of Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Amid a rare two days off in between games, Jordan Clarkson used his free time to campaign for his teammates to be named to the upcoming NBA All-Star game.
The Jazz had consecutive days off for the first time in nearly three weeks, allowing players to take Wednesday off as a personal day, and practicing Thursday in preparation for a stretch of three games in four days against some of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
“It’s definitely good to have two days off, especially at home,” Clarkson said. “Being able to rest, get treatment, be in our own beds, see our family — stuff like that. Stuff that keeps us free and keeps us going.”
The @utahjazz will face their toughest test in weeks when they host the @Bucks on Friday night. #TakeNote https://t.co/mKDGt5z5Lh
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 12, 2021
Since the season began on December 22, Wednesday and Thursday marked only the fourth time this season that the Jazz had had consecutive days away from a real game, and only the second time both days have been spent in Salt Lake City.
“It’s part of the job,” Clarson acknowledged. “But it’s definitely good to be back home for two days, playing in front of the home crowd.”
The Jazz beat the Boston Celtics on Tuesday in the first game of a four-game homestand before heading back out on the road for six of their final eight games to end the first half of the regular season.
Clarkson Campaigns For All-Star Teammates
All-Star voting is underway, and despite having the best record in the NBA, the Jazz are woefully underrepresented among fans.
To date, only Donovan Mitchell finds his name inside the top ten in voting at his position after two weeks of voting.
Donovan Mitchell climbed one spot in the latest round of #NBAAllStar voting.
Mike Conley and Rudy Gobert are still being undervalued with one week left to vote. #TakeNote https://t.co/OkPAE79d7d
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 11, 2021
Voting will conclude next week when the All-Star starters are named on Thursday on TNT. All-Star reserves will be named the following Tuesday. Clarkson used his opportunity when speaking to reporters to campaign for his All-Star worthy teammates.
“I think you’ve got Mike Conley, [and] Bojan [Bogdanovic] playing at a high level,” Conley said. “Shoot, Rudy [Gobert] and Donovan, those are really the locks. I feel like our two sleepers are really Mike a Bojan.”
When pressed on why he didn’t include himself on the Jazz All-Star list, he said he had other priorities.
“Hey man, whatever happens, happens,” Clarkson said. “But I’m chilling, I’m cool where I’m at. I’m trying to go get that Sixth Man and win us some games.”
Clarkson is currently the NBA’s leading scorer among bench players. The guard is averaging career-highs in points (17.4) and rebounds (4.3) per game and shooting a career-best 38 percent from the three-point line.
