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PHOENIX — Jordan Clarkson bookended his postgame press conference following Sunday's win over the Phoenix Suns with some jokes.
After hearing Danuel House Jr.'s praise of his defense, Clarkson deadpanned, "Defense? What's that?" (He quickly added, "Nah, I'm just playing.")
Later, as he got up from the table, Clarkson did his best Allen Iverson impression.
"Defense? We talkin' about defense?" Clarkson said, harkening back to Iverson's famous practice rant.
Almost by the nature of his role, Clarkson is often a lightning rod for criticism. He's heard all the critiques — he dribbles too much, he takes bad shots, he doesn't defend, he torpedoes possessions, etc.
"People like to pick Jordan's game apart," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said.
That's partially because everything he does seems to stand out; Clarkson is hard to ignore. Fans gravitate toward his carefree personality, and his fashion sense demands attention. He plays the same way he lives: unabashed and free. While that makes his triumphs easy to spot, it also puts a spotlight on his mistakes.
In the second quarter on Sunday, Clarkson raised his hands enthusiastically. He was wide open on the wing and was trying to get his teammates to pass him the ball. When a pass didn't immediately come, he frustratedly walked further out. By the time the ball came, he shot up a 30-foot 3-pointer with 10 seconds left in the shot clock seemingly out of protest.
The whole negative sequence was easy to spot.
On the other hand, so was his scintillating second half.
Yes, his shots went in — Clarkson was 7 of 10 in the second half for 16 points — but it was how he helped the team in other ways that made his game stand out.
With under five minutes left in the contest, Clarkson got Jae Crowder in isolation. He easily got around Crowder with a quick dribble and was looking to score. One of his strongest attributes this season has been his ability to get into the paint and score over smaller defenders. Deandre Ayton, who came out and met Clarkson, isn't a smaller defender.
So Clarkson pulled an audible. Instead of trying to score, he swung a pass to House for an open 3-pointer.
"Those plays I've got to keep continuing to make especially when I got that opportunity to kind of iso and get past my man," Clarkson said. "I know I can do a good job getting in the paint, and making another person hit. But I don't think I have been willing to make that pass earlier in the year. It's just growth, study, the time we are putting in, and the coaching staff is bringing it to my attention."
Snyder said there have been times this season Clarkson has regressed back to an old habit of reading a play late. He's waited until after receiving a pass before really figuring out what he can do with it; that split second of hesitation can be the difference between a good possession or a blown up one. In the second half against the Suns, he knew what he was going to do before he had even caught the pass.
"The game's easier after that, and I think he's got more space to operate," Snyder said. "He made a couple passes inside that we didn't finish, too. I think when you're scoring that well at the rim to then be willing to drop it off — he made a great one out as well. … That's the guy that he is. For a guy that has a green light, he's a pretty selfless guy."
Throw in some good help defense — even making sure a teammate was in the right position on one play — and a couple crafty steals, and Clarkson showed he can do more than just shoot to help the team win games. That's something the whole team is trying to embrace in the final weeks of the season.
"Second half of the season. Lock it down, do what we gotta do," Clarkson said. "Start playing in playoff mode, sacrifice and do what we gotta do to get wins."
