Jordan Clarkson erupts for career-high 45 to outduel De’Aaron Fox in Jazz win over Kings
De’Aaron Fox was sensational Saturday night in Salt Lake City. Jordan Clarkson was just a little better.
Clarkson erupted for a career-high 45 points to lead the Utah Jazz to a 134-125 victory over the Kings at Vivint Arena. Clarkson, the NBA’s reigning Sixth Man of the Year, came off the bench to make 15 of 21 from the field and 7 of 13 from 3-point range, eclipsing his previous career high of 42 points in a triple-overtime loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 13, 2019.
“We were just too loose (defensively),” interim Kings coach Alvin Gentry said. “We let (Clarkson) catch the ball, and when he’s going like that, he’s very capable of doing what he did tonight.”
Fox finished with 41 points and 11 assists for the Kings (24-45), who have lost four in a row. Harrison Barnes had 18 points. Davion Mitchell came off the bench to score 14.
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 26 points and Donovan Mitchell added 25 for the Jazz (42-25). Hassan Whiteside had 12 points, 21 rebounds and three blocked shots against his former team.
Both teams were shorthanded with starters missing on both sides. Kings center Domantas Sabonis was ruled out due to personal reasons early Saturday afternoon. The Jazz announced shortly before tipoff point guard Mike Conley was out due to rest and center Rudy Gobert was out with a phalangeal joint sprain of the first metatarsal in his left foot.
Gentry would not offer additional details on the absence of Sabonis, but he didn’t seem concerned.
“He’s out for personal reasons,” Gentry said. “It’s not any big deal. I think he’ll be back soon.”
Fox wasted little time getting into double figures, scoring 10 points over the first six minutes. He finished the first period with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from 3-point range, helping the Kings race out to a 42-37 advantage. Sacramento set a season high for points in a quarter while Fox established a season high for points in a quarter by a Kings player.
Fox went into the game shooting 28.8% from 3-point range on the season, but he has been shooting the long ball with confidence lately after converting 39.7% over the past 14 games. He was even better over the last five games, connecting on 44.4%.
“Obviously, if he’s going to shoot it at that clip, it’s hard for teams to just go under him (on screens),” Gentry said. “And if we can get them in a position where they have to go over the top, with his speed and his savvy as far as getting to the basket, then that becomes a situation where we can create things for other guys, as well as him getting to the basket. He’s just playing outstanding basketball. He’s been playing great and doing everything he can to help us win.”
Utah staged an 11-2 run to go ahead 67-65 lead with Fox on the bench to start the second quarter. The Kings regained a seven-point lead, but they trailed 71-67 at the half after being outscored 15-4 over the final 3:54.
The Kings lost another starter at halftime when the team announced Justin Holiday would not return to the game due to a non-COVID-19 illness. Donte DiVincenzo started in place of Holiday in the second half.
The Jazz led throughout the third period and carried a 100-88 lead into the fourth. Meanwhile, the losses continued to mount for the Kings as Richaun Holmes was ejected between quarters. Holmes launched a one-handed, full-court heave toward the opposite basket after the buzzer sounded to signal the end of the third period. Crew chief James Capers told a pool reporter Holmes was ejected for “recklessly” throwing the ball into the crowd.
Question: Why was Richaun Holmes ejected from tonight’s game?
Capers: “Richaun Holmes was ejected because clearly after the third quarter had ended, he recklessly fired the ball the length of the floor and it went into the crowd with force. By rule that is an automatic ejection.”
Question: How do you determine the difference between a legitimate shot attempt versus what you deemed it was?
Capers: “It’s the way the ball went into the stands.”
Sacramento mounted an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to five with 6:59 remaining, but Clarkson hit big shots down the stretch to close out the Kings.
“He comes off the bench to score the ball and that’s what they want him to do,” Fox said. “He got going and it’s almost impossible to stop him after that.”
Fox has been pretty unstoppable as well. He is averaging 29.1 points and 6.8 assists while shooting 56.8% from the field over the past 14 games. Fox acknowledged that he’s trying to serve as a more vocal leader following the trade that sent Tyrese Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers, noting that “one of our most vocal guys is no longer on the team.”
Gentry said it’s clear Fox is taking his game and his leadership to another level.
“Obviously, he’s the cornerstone of our franchise,” Gentry said. “So, to see him step up like he has, and then to show leadership like he has, and then understand that he’s still a very, very young player. I think you can see he’s trying to get better as a leader, trying to get better with his game on the floor and just get better overall. I think he’s playing as good as any guard in the league right now. Unfortunately, that is not translating into wins, but he’s doing everything he can to try to help get us there.”
This story was originally published March 12, 2022 at 9:54 PM.
