'Etches my time in Utah': Clarkson's 4th-quarter run gives Jazz win and makes history

SALT LAKE CITY — Jordan Clarkson put his name in the record books again on Monday in Utah's 127-115 win over the Wizards.

With a late fourth-quarter eruption — he scored 12 straight points to lead Utah's game-winning 20-3 run late in the contest — Clarkson finished with 38 points and now has the most 30-plus point games as a reserve in team history. Monday's was his 13th time breaking the 30-point mark coming off the bench.

"My teammates did a good job of getting the ball to me, and then I was just trying to get to my spot and score in places that I was comfortable," Clarkson said of his personal 12-0 run. "That was it; just trying to finish the game."

As for the historical significance of Monday's performance, Clarkson said it was important to him.

"It kind of etches my time here in Utah," he said. "The history, the culture that's being built here, I'm glad to be a part of and have my name in all those books."

Clarkson has had a number of those moments now. He was the franchise's first player to win NBA Sixth Man of the Year, and he broke the long regular-season triple-double drought earlier this season.

Clarkson also became the first player ever to record at least 38 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists off the bench in game, according to Basketball Reference. When he thinks of all the elite bench guards in the history of the game — Jamal Crawford, Lou Williams, JR Smith — he feels honored to be mentioned alongside them.

"Especially the guys that I've looked up to, and all have been a part of my career," he said. "You look at Jamal, he talked to me all the time; playing alongside Lou, Will and JR Smith, and those kinds of guys that come off the bench and give energy and have won that award. I took that role on. It's definitely been my impact in this league, something that I really took with stride and really tried to succeed on coming off the bench and really affecting the game in that area."

Clarkson was certainly impactful in Monday's win.

Clarkson's run began with the game tied at 113-113 with 4:08 remaining. He made 5-of-6 shots in the surge, helping the Jazz pull away for just their second win since the trade deadline. He also added 10 rebounds and seven assists Monday.

"Jordan had a big night for us with 38 points," Jazz coach Will Hardy said. "I'm honestly more proud of his 10 rebounds than his 38 points, if I'm being honest."

That shows the evolution of Clarkson with the Jazz. In Utah, he went from a struggling bench player to a Sixth Man of the Year gunner to now a more well-rounded guard.

Oh, and a part of Utah Jazz history, too.

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