The pros and cons of the Milwaukee Bucks trading for Jordan Clarkson
By Dalton Sell
Over the last few days, rumors have surfaced that the Milwaukee Bucks have interest in adding a former Sixth Man of the Year to their roster via trade. Per Fastbreak’s Brett Siegel, the Bucks have expressed interest in acquiring Jordan Clarkson of the Utah Jazz.
Clarkson is among the few remaining veterans currently on Utah’s roster amidst what has been an abrupt firesale this offseason. Royce O’Neale, Rudy Gobert, and Donovan Mitchell have found new homes over the past few months, and it is seemingly only a matter of time before players such as Clarkson, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Mike Conely Jr. join them as Utah prepares to rebuild.
Whether or not Milwaukee’s interest in Clarkson is exploratory or if the front office is determined to get the 30-year-old on the roster, the rumors are interesting. Clarkson is certainly a player who could be an impactful addition to any contender, and let us look at the pros and cons of the Bucks potentially swinging a trade for him before the 2022-23 NBA season begins.
The pros of the Milwaukee Bucks trading for Jordan Clarkson
The Milwaukee Bucks were plagued by a lack of bench scoring last season. Per NBA.com/stats, Milwaukee’s second unit averaged 27.8 points per game during the regular season, which ranked 27th in the entire league. Some of that can be attributed to Bobby Portis taking on a larger role in the starting lineup. However, it was clear that the Bucks would have benefitted greatly from having another go-to scorer off the bench, especially when Khris Middleton went down with an MCL sprain in the playoffs. To help lessen the concerns surrounding Milwaukee’s bench scoring before next season, the Bucks could make a run at Jordan Clarkson.
Clarkson has cemented his status as one of the NBA’s best reserves over the past three years as a member of the Utah Jazz. The guard has averaged 16.8 points per contest in a Jazz jersey over the last three regular seasons, and he even took home the 2020-21 Sixth Man of the Year honors. The 30-year-old flat-out knows how to score the basketball, and he could be a tremendous addition to a bench that could use a boost offensively. Having Clarkson in the second unit alongside players like Pat Connaughton and Bobby Portis would certainly make that group a more formidable unit.
Milwaukee’s Big 3 of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton would all benefit mightily by having another scorer like Clarkson alongside them. Rather than relying so heavily on the trio to score, Clarkson could take some of that pressure off and allow those three to conserve some of their energy for other areas. Having Clarkson shoulder some of that scoring responsibility would help the leading trio and other Bucks mightily.
It is also not controversial to say that the Bucks could use an upgrade at the backup point guard position after George Hill’s lackluster 2021-22 campaign. Although Clarkson is more of a combo guard and not a traditional point guard like Hill, he would fit the billing as an upgrade. Clarkson is capable of handling the basketball and putting plenty of points on the board off the bench, which would help the Bucks out tremendously.