The most important Utah Jazz friendship this season

A pair of Utah Jazz playmakers are helping keep one another’s spirits high.

This NBA-leading Utah Jazz team (7-1) hopes to make a stronger push for the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy than the franchise’s 2020-21 regular-season champs, who fell to the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference Semifinals. And if that is to be the case, Donovan Mitchell and Jordan Clarkson need to be on the same page with each firing on all cylinders.

Now, although the injury gods never guarantee 100 percent health for anyone in the postseason, the two ultra-potent Jazz guards appear to be putting in the work to bond in a fashion that could ensure they reach a state of coinciding greatness.

It starts with their encouragement for one another, which was on full display in Utah’s 116-98 win at the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.

Donovan Mitchell as Jordan Clarkson’s most visible Utah Jazz supporter

Jordan Clarkson was due for a massive performance against the Atlanta Hawks.

Also, there’s no doubt the third-year Utah Jazz guard and reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year needed a splash party for his confidence’s sake after failing to reach 20 points in any game this season. After all, Clarkson entered the contest shooting a dismal 33.6 percent from the field and 20.0 percent beyond the arc.

ALSO READ: The amazing streak of Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson

Clarkson’s team-high 30-point brilliance in Atlanta, including a 10-for-19 clip from the field and a 4-for-10 mark from downtown, was the definition of a bounceback showing.

Meanwhile, Donovan Mitchell was out of commission as a precaution after rolling his right ankle two nights prior in a 119-113 home victory over the Sacramento Kings. Yet that didn’t stop the two-time All-Star guard from being Clarkson’s No. 1 fan. Just check out his energy in street clothes from the bench as he anticipated his hot-handed teammate’s moves and stroke from the corner:

Mitchell then publicly expressed his sincere fandom for his buddy by quote-tweeting the above highlight with a “TWEEN TWEEN TWEEN TWEEN” message. In doing so, he demonstrated his utter appreciation for Clarkson’s between-the-legs razzle-dazzle.

Following the bout, Clarkson spoke about the meaning of the support from all of his fellow Jazzmen:

Look, the last thing this Jazz team should want is for Jordan Clarkson to become even the slightest bit hesitant with his patented “Flame Thrower” arsenal. On that same note, the group certainly does not need Donovan Mitchell, who is shooting only 41.6 percent from the field and 32.9 percent from downtown himself, to ever second-guess his shot either.

They are the Jazz’s two undisputed premier go-get-a-bucket players. Therefore, the got-your-back bond between Jordan Clarkson and Donovan Mitchell is vital in both men remaining as self-assured as ever.

The Utah Jazz’s next game is at the Miami Heat at 5:30 p.m. MT Saturday.