It was a homecoming for the ages for Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson.
Before coming to New York, Clarkson spent the previous five-plus seasons in Utah, which were some of the best years of his NBA career. And while his short time with the Knicks hasn't lived up to those expectations -- his minutes have dwindled as the season has gone along -- New York needed Clarkson on Wednesday night.
Trailing the lowly Jazz at the half, 65-56, Clarkson and Jalen Brunson combined for 55 points to lead the comeback in the Knicks' win in Utah.
"As a team, we started off slow," Clarkson told MSG on the floor after the win. "Good halftime for us to kind of get at each other and let us know we gotta pick it up. Just a good win. It's not the first time I've been high in this building, and I'm just glad it happened here. Continue to keep working and get the next win."
Turnovers leading to transition buckets and poor defense helped the Jazz get out to a lead as big as 20 points in the first half. Head coach Mike Brown said the Knicks cleaned up the turnovers in the second half and was the difference between the win and what could have been one of the worst losses of the season.
But the first-year Knicks coach could not help but praise Clarkson for his play on Wednesday.
"Jordan Clarkson was huge for us, and we had a lot of guys that played the right way in the second half, including Jalen, but Clarkson kept us in the game when we were down," Brown said. "And then definitely helped us get over the hump with the performance he had.
"And on top of the 27 points, he had five offensive rebounds, and that helped slow their transition game down. So, he was our defensive player of the game," Brown continued with a chuckle. "But just a whale of a game by Jordan in a lot of different areas, his physicality too on the ball was good. He just gave us a spark on both ends of the floor."
Josh Hart, the usual spark and energy guy on the Knicks, was out with knee discomfort, which facilitated Clarkson's increased minutes in Utah. In his previous four games, Clarkson scored a combined 16 points in 26 minutes on the floor. On Wednesday night, Clarkson put up 27 points in 26 minutes while coming down with five rebounds (all offensive) and dishing three assists. He was also a plus-19 on the floor.
It was the production the Knicks hoped to get regularly when they signed him this offseason, to be a pivotal bench piece. However, with the addition of Jose Alvardo and the emergence of Landry Shamet and Mohamed Diawara as reliable bench players, Clarkson's minutes waned.
Clarkson was asked how he stays ready for when his number is called, and the former Sixth Man of the Year credited his teammates for keeping him ready. He shouted out the young guys on the bench, like Tyler Kolek and Jeremy Sochan, but also Alvarado for playing one-on-one with him at practice that helped him stay ready.
Clarkson also said that his mentality isn't about thinking where he fits on the team or the rotations.
"It's really not about rotations right now," he explained. "We got one goal and one goal in mind, and that's to win each game. As always, next, man up, man. We just trying to compete and win every game."
from countless memories, buckets, ???????????????????? ???????? moments and the endless love showed to UT????H, you'll always have our love and respect ????forever a Jazzman, welcome back, Sixx ????#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/xTg0TZHgKv
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2026
In the first quarter of the Knicks' win, the Jazz presented Clarkson with a tribute video. It was a nice moment for a player who gave the organization so much over the last few years. He tried holding back tears during the tribute and thanked the organization and fans for showing him love when talking about it with MSG.
"For him to go out and perform the way he did [after that], you couldn't ask for anything better, and it just says a lot about him," Brown said. "We needed him, and it goes to show that he's keeping, not just his body, right, but his mind is in a good spot to be able to go out and do that in a game. When you're down 20 in the first half, just to see that you couldn't ask for anything better, especially from him, who's a veteran who hasn't been playing or in the rotation and all of a sudden, we need him."
Brown said he didn't know that the Jazz organization would do that for Clarkson, and while the coach didn't say what his decision to use Clarkson on Wednesday was, a member of his staff certainly felt something. Brown explained that bench coach Mo Cheeks told him earlier in the day that they have to find a way to get Clarkson in the game "because he can have a big one for us tonight, we may need it."
Brown called Cheeks a prophet, laughing while saying he was on target with his assessment of Clarkson.
"We needed it," Brown said. "We needed every single thing that Jordan Clarkson brought to the table tonight."