There was rookie on rookie crime in Utah on Wednesday night.
With a record of of 14-41 and Kobe Bryant out for the season with a torn rotator cuff, one would believe that there isn’t any incentive to watch the Los Angeles Lakers as they typically play an abysmal brand of basketball on a nightly basis.
Laker fans are fed up with watching Nick Young heave up off-balance 25-footers after executing a series of sloppy dribble moves and hearing Carlos Boozer howl out “AND ONE,” after a hoop-and-harm as the Lakers are getting drubbed by 20. Tally that up with Jeremy Lin’s constant amateurish decisions and Byron Scott’s baffling decisions (Ryan Kelly at the three? REALLY!?) and I’m thankful that I’ve yet to blow a gasket this season.
But, if there is ONE reason why I’ve refrained from having a complete meltdown this season, it’s the continued growth of rookie Jordan Clarkson. In Clarkson, the Lakers have a quick and athletic guard that has a penchant for getting to the rim, basically something they haven’t possessed since a prime Kobe Bryant.
During the Lakers’ game against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, Clarkson showed off that impressive athleticism by throwing down a hammer on Jazz rookie Dante Exum.
This photo of Boozer, Lin and Clarkson celebrating the play sums up exactly how I feel:
Boozer = ? Clarkson = ? Lin = ? pic.twitter.com/B0GJ8ULOIP
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 26, 2015
Time for my best Stu Lantz impersonation: THAT WAS NOOOOICE.
Clarkson finished the 100-97 win with a career-high 22 points.
