It was a text Carlos Boozer had been waiting to send for over 15 years.
"Congrats on the triple-double."
After 5,801 days, the Jazz have finally recorded a triple-double.
With just 2:28 remaining, Jordan Clarkson chased down a long rebound for his 10th of the game. That completed the final stat line of 20 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds. The Delta Center crowd exploded with the rebound as Clarkson immediately called timeout.
"It meant a lot," Clarkson said. "Honestly, I think I'm the — well, I am — the longest player here. Just breaking that record, seeing all the team and the guys, it just felt good. … It was a very cool little milestone to put on my list."
It didn't come easy as Clarkson recorded his ninth rebound at the 5:33 mark, which brought the crowd to life. With Utah extending its lead, Will Hardy and Clarkson could be seen having multiple conversations about whether to leave Clarkson in. Hardy elected to do so, and history was made (or broken?).
"We were just having a conversation if he (Hardy) was going to take me out. … But he left me in there," Clarkson said. "Everyone did a good job of boxing out so I could get that last rebound. I'm just happy to break that record, finally. … I know it's been some time."
"I said, ‘Get a rebound and call timeout, immediately'," Hardy said postgame.
While the possibility of getting the final rebound by throwing the ball off the backboard to himself entered his mind, Clarkson said Hardy told him to not get it that way. And although Hardy didn't want the rebound to come cheaply, he wanted it to come fast.
"I'm obviously not here to mess up a good time, I understand that I would've been the most hated man in the building if I would've subbed him out," Hardy said with a laugh. "But there is a part of you where you are the head coach and the worst thing in the world would be Jordan turning his ankle up 30 hunting for a triple-double. But again, I do recognize that those things are important. … The way the building reacted, the way the fans reacted, the way the team reacted, the way Jordan reacted, I'm happy it worked out."
"You could definitely feel it," Clarkson added of the crowd's support. "We got the best fans in the league. … They talk basketball, they knew what was on the plate, and we had to deliver."
Often viewed as the heart and soul of the team, it's fitting that Clarkson was the player to snap the streak as he's currently the longest-tenured member of the organization. He joined the team in Dec. 2019 following a trade with Cleveland and has left his mark on the organization ever since.
He won the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award in 2021, when he averaged 18.4 points per game. He's second all-time at the Jazz for threes made in a season with 208. He dropped a career-high 45 points two years ago in a 134-125 win over Sacramento. He had a career season last year, registering highs in points, rebounds, and assists as a full-time starter. He also ranks fifth all-time in Jazz history with 686 made three-pointers.
"JC is a big part of our team," Hardy said. "He sometimes unnecessarily catches some heat when he doesn't play great. … But the way that he operates in our locker room and with his teammates and the coaching staff, he's a big part of the fiber of the team. He's a big part of the personality of our team and the personality of our organization."
Utah's last recorded triple-double came on Feb. 13, 2008, when Carlos Boozer finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists against the Seattle Supersonics. During the time that had elapsed, the Jazz had played 1,256 games, and 1,205 triple-doubles were recorded.
Following his text from Boozer, Clarkson had a message for the former Jazz great.
"My bad to my OG Carlos Boozer, but we had to do it. … That's love," he said.