Jordan Clarkson was the Lakers’ second leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points playing mostly off the ball, and improved his three-point shooting percentage from 31.4 to 34.7. Clarkson appeared in 79 games this season – all of them as a starter – and led the team with 32.3 minutes per contest.
Below is a summary of his exit interview with assembled media on Thursday:
On his future: “I feel confident that I’ll be here. I want to be somewhere that I can call home and leave a legacy”.
On Kobe’s final night: “It was great, it was amazing. An experience that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. This was way special. He dropped 60. That’s just amazing”.
On his chemistry with D’Angelo Russell: “I think it developed a lot towards the end of the year. I felt like we did take steps in terms of playing alongside each other, and learning to play off each other. There’s a lot more to come for us in terms of development”.
On why he’d like to stay in L.A.: “This city and how they embrace people. We have the best fan base in the world. I don’t think you get that feeling anywhere else. Seventeen wins and we were still getting love. There’s Laker love everywhere, and we want to be a part of that and do well for what’s on the front of the jersey”.
On the final moments of Wednesday’s game: “(Kobe) brought us all together and gave us a big hug. It was kind of sad. One of those moments I’m always going to remember”.
On whether he plans to play for the Philippines this summer: “I would love to, but there’s a conflict with free agency. I definitely want to be a part of that”.
On why they were able to play better down the stretch: “It was really good. I think we feel the last road trip everyone lost themselves in the moment. Nobody was worried about themselves, everyone competed for Kobe. That’s why we had fun. We have to figure out how to do that, in terms of playing with that mindset of just not caring. Playing free in a structured manner”.