Last night, New York Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson helped his team advance to the NBA Cup semifinals with a 117-101 win against the Toronto Raptors.
Clarkson scored 12 points in 26 minutes and surpassed Manu Ginobili to become the ninth-most all-time scorer off the bench. The 12-year veteran now has 8,283 career points off the bench and is 116 points away from Boston Celtics great Kevin McHale.
Clarkson has been a valuable weapon for head coach Mike Brown, and his minutes increased against the Raptors due to the ankle injury Miles McBride suffered against the Orlando Magic on Sunday.
The Knicks and the Magic will meet this Saturday in Las Vegas, with an opportunity to advance to the NBA Cup championship game.
Clarkson can play a significant role for Knicks
One complaint about former Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau is that his starting lineups played too many minutes.
The Knicks' starting five seemed to run out of gas during the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. That's just one reason Clarkson can contribute not only to scoring but also to giving players like McBride and Mikal Bridges time to rest.
He won the Sixth Man of the Year Award with the Utah Jazz during the 2020-21 season and should be a candidate to win it this year with the Knicks.
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