Jordan Clarkson's absence is great for Johnny Juzang

Jordan Clarkson could be out for the rest of the season, but that's good news for Johnny Juzang.
Houston Rockets v Utah Jazz
Houston Rockets v Utah Jazz / Alex Goodlett/GettyImages
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The Utah Jazz are going to be without Jordan Clarkson, marking his third straight game he'll be out. Clarkson hasn't played much since the team entered full-tank mode and it's very likely that hell never again dawn the colors of the Utah Jazz. Since the Jazz are tanking in order to get a better draft pick in the upcoming 2024 NBA Draft, the focus won't be on rushing Clarkson back.

The focus is instead on the young players the Jazz are hoping will develop and blossom into the next set of stars. One of those hopefuls, who is looking at a rotation spot for next season is former UCLA guard Johnny Juzang.

Juzang is a sharpshooter who is hoping to not only fill in for Clarkson short-term but would more than likely love the chance to be his permanent replacement as the team's sixth man off the bench. While historically, just an average three-point shooter, Juzang has the ability to hit from all over the court.

In college, he maintained a career field goal percentage of 43.1%, a career 35.2% from three-point land, and a free throw percentage of 85.3%. In the G-League, where he spent the bulk of two seasons, he shot very similarly, hitting 43.3% from the floor, 34% from three, and 92.1% from the free throw line. So far in the NBA, he's hitting 38% from the floor, 28.3% from three, and 60% from the free throw line, but it's important to note he's played much more in 2024 than in 2023.

In 2024, he's shooting nearly 46% from the floor, just a tad under 35% from three and he hasn't missed a free throw yet in 2024.

He's by no means a finished project but he's shown potential as a scorer and has proven to be a good enough defender in college that with time, he could be an asset to an NBA team. He's not Kris Dunn or Walker Kessler, but he's potentially better than Clarkson on defense, and that's something.

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