Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson celebrates during the championship parade
Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson celebrates during the championship parade
Jordan Clarkson came back to the Knicks on a one-year, $3.9 million deal, and the price is the whole point.
The Knicks did not need another summer splash. They needed to keep a scorer who already knows the group, accepts a bench role and can make a possession uncomfortable for an opposing reserve unit when the ball stops moving.
Clarkson has always lived with shot variance. Shot variance is part of the package. A former Sixth Man of the Year is going to hunt looks that make a coach reach for a timeout once in a while, especially when he is asked to lift a second unit.
The deal works because New York is not asking him to become a safer player. The Knicks are asking him to be himself in a role that already made sense during a title run.
Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson is seen through a fan's phone camera at the parade
Jordan Clarkson is seen through a fan's phone camera at the Knicks championship parade. Credit: Brenden Willsch-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
Clarkson can lose a possession by trying to create too much. He can also bail out a terrible possession with the exact kind of shot most players are afraid to take. A roster with established primary scorers can live with that tradeoff more easily than a young team desperate for every player to behave perfectly.
I liked the fit because it did not require a sales pitch. He has the ball-handling and scoring freedom to help the bench, but he is not being handed keys to the offense.
The one-year structure helps too. The Knicks kept a familiar source of instant offense without locking themselves into a long commitment or pretending the bench does not need more work.
Clarkson’s return does not replace every player who left. The Knicks can celebrate continuity and still admit that the back end of the roster has to defend better, rebound better or cover more positions than one guard can.
No issue there. This was never supposed to be the move that fixed everything. It was the type of efficient, unglamorous decision champions get to make because the larger foundation is already there.
Clarkson will have nights where the shot selection drives people nuts. He will also have nights where the Knicks need somebody to get a bucket and he does it before anyone can overthink it. At $3.9 million, that is a reasonable bet.