Subscribe
Follow Us
After eliminating the Memphis Grizzlies in five games, the Utah Jazz were able to kick their feet up as they watched the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks swing away at one another in seven games. The Clippers came out on top, setting up a date with the Jazz in round two of the 2021 NBA Playoffs.
The Clippers are led by Kawhi Leonard and Paul George while the Jazz have a plethora of options but are led by Donovan Mitchell. This series figures to be wildly compelling. If the Jazz are to come out on top, here is the X-factor that they need to step up.
Jazz X-factor against the Clippers: Jordan Clarkson
While Jordan Clarkson's shooting percentages weren't up to par for his standards in round one against the Grizzlies, he still provided some real timely buckets while averaging 18.6 points per game in the series against Memphis.
Clarkson is in the midst of arguably the best season of his entire career, which has landed him the NBA Sixth Man Award.
The Jazz have a ton of pieces in Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Bojan Bogdanovic, Joe Ingles, Mike Conley, the list could go on and on and on. But the unsung hero of this Jazz team this year has been Clarkson.
He started in only one game while playing in 68 for Utah. He's been the constant spark plug off the bench providing instant offense in the snap of a finger for the Jazz. His contributions in this series against the Clippers can quite literally shift the momentum for Utah. He makes that big of a difference.
Article Continues Below
The Jazz will need Clarkson to be more efficient in his shooting this series, but Mitchell and Bogdanovic figure to draw a lot of attention from Leonard and George which could free up opportunities for Clarkson to go nuclear on LA.
This series for the Clippers is drastically different than what they saw round one. Against the Mavericks they knew, like everybody else, that everything for the Mavericks starts and ends with Luka Doncic. They were able to completely neutralize him in the second half of most games in that series.
Utah is a different animal. The Jazz can strike with an array of different options and one of those is Clarkson. He has found the perfect situation with Utah for himself and Quin Snyder is constantly putting Clarkson in advantageous situations to flourish.
Believe it or not, the Clippers defense was not great at multiple stages against Dallas in round one. The Mavericks in Game 7 were even getting some really good looks from three, they just couldn't capitalize. Leaving Bogdanvoic, Ingles, Conley, Mitchell or Clarkson open could prove problematic for LA in this series.
The Jazz are the rare breed in today's league where they have had an abundant amount of success but have done so without forming some “super team.” It's a bunch of dudes and a couple of stars that have formed the perfect blend in route to getting the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. For the Jazz to find the ultimate success against the Clippers by winning the series, Jordan Clarkson will have to be the X-factor.
