Los Angeles Lakers Have No Reason to Hold Jordan Clarkson Back Now

Los Angeles Lakers fans have been clamoring to see more of rookie Jordan Clarkson, and they are finally getting their wish.

With Kobe Bryant resting due to old age and Ronnie Price out with a sore elbow, Clarkson received extended floor burn the past two games: 17 minutes in a loss Monday night to the Phoenix Suns, and 18 minutes Friday night in a loss to the Utah Jazz.

The results weren’t always pretty. The second-round draft choice is like a young racehorse in this, the nascent stage of his NBA career. He bolts from the starting gate and rushes headlong in his thirst to score points and make good things happen.

Clarkson shot 3-of-13 from the field in those two games combined. His stats for the season are 4.9 points, 1.5 rebounds and less than one assist per game, in 12.2 minutes per game.

However, it's not always all about the numbers. The 6’5” guard has blow-by speed, shifty maneuverability, good ball-handling skills and a hunger to improve. And despite his youthful exuberance, he’s not careless when handling the rock, with a very low 0.5 turnover rate (1.5 per-36).

Throughout the early part of the season, the Lakers have assigned their 22-year-old to their NBA Development League affiliate for extra game-time experience. Clarkson has averaged 22.6 points, 7.8 assists and five rebounds per game in five games as a starter for the Los Angeles D-Fenders.

His D-League seasoning has included a 35-point game, with 11 assists and six rebounds, playing 44 minutes of a four-quarter game in a 174-169 loss to the Reno Bighorns. Joining him that night in the D-Fenders lineup was fellow Lakers rookie Tarik Black

But with the Lakers’ record spiraling down into oblivion, it’s time to put more emphasis on growing young talent, and that means during the team’s own schedule. The postseason has become ever more improbable. It’s time to evaluate and build for the future.

After all, Los Angeles paid $1.8 million to the Washington Wizards for their No. 46 pick in the 2014 NBA draft and chose Clarkson out of Missouri. To quote an increasingly popular rallying cry, it’s time to “free Jordan Clarkson.”

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#Lakers need to free Jordan Clarkson, part 185— https://t.co/4Qm93MNMrW

— Ethan Norof (@Mr_Norof) January 20, 2015"

Receiving NBA game time during competitive stretches is the best way to accelerate any rookie’s learning curve. Mentorship is another priority. One asset the Lakers theoretically have in this regard is future Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash, who hasn’t been an active presence at Lakers facilities since being declared out for the season with chronic back and nerve irritation issues.

“I still haven’t given up hope on that,” said Lakers coach Byron Scott recently, per Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “I would still like for him to come around. If for nothing else, to talk to Jordan Clarkson and help him and tutor him a little bit. But as we’ve been talking all season long, (Nash) has to feel OK about that.”

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Clarkson feels the same, according to Medina, although he has at least received some text messages from Nash about assimilating to the NBA and how to run an offense. “I wish he was around to learn from and to watch as well, even though I watched him play when I was young,” said the member of a new generation. “I definitely would’ve been better if he was here.”

In the absence of Nash, Clarkson has gotten some guidance from Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. As Medina wrote earlier in the season, Bryant has been impressed by the young prospect’s work ethic: “I like him. He’s a hard worker and a curious player. He tries to pick things apart and tries to learn and absorb as much as he can.”

Clarkson, who grew up in Texas, was a combo guard for two seasons at the University of Tulsa before transferring to Mizzou, where he sat out a season due to NCAA transfer rules and then averaged 17.5 points per game as the starting point guard for his redshirt junior season.

A self-motivated improver, Clarkson enlisted the aid of skills coach Drew Hanlen after declaring for the draft, getting a higher release point and better balance on his jump shot. 

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak referred to the second-round pick as “A ball-handling guard that we’re excited about drafting,” on draft night, per Dave McMenamin (then) of ESPN LA. “Good athlete. Really good size. Good defender. Excels probably at attacking the rim. Maybe not as good of a shooter, probably, as he will be when he works on it.”

It's an ongoing process. Clarkson has continued to hook up with Hanlen during the regular season. 

Settling on a position for the evolving rookie has been a fluid proposition so far this season. His talent for ball-handling and slashing through the lanes makes him an intriguing candidate at the point, but his propensity for jacking the ball up rather than distributing has resulted in the Lakers more often shifting him to the 2-guard slot.

But as his games with the D-Fenders have proven, the impressionable young player can indeed drop dimes—his 7.8 per game in the minor league is a quantum step up from his 0.8 with the Lakers.

Where Clarkson fits best in the larger scheme of things—the ongoing transition to a team of the future—will only be decided by increasing the sample size.

The Lakers have no reason to hold Jordan Clarkson back now. It’s time to set a talented prospect loose and let him run.