SALT LAKE CITY — There’s something about Utah for Jordan Clarkson.
Out of the Knicks rotation for most of the last seven weeks, the reserve guard returned to his old home and put on a show, scoring a season-high 27 points off the bench to help the Knicks recover from an 18-point deficit and avoid an ugly defeat to the tanktastic Jazz, 134-117.
Clarkson, who spent 5 ½ seasons with the Jazz, got a video tribute at the Delta Center and proceeded to take the fans on a trip down memory lane, flashing the microwave scoring that won him the Sixth Man of the Year here in 2021.
“I spent six years in this arena so the rims are pretty familiar to me,” Clarkson said. “It’s not the first time I’ve been hot in this arena.
“Just being able to start the flame and keep it going.”
Clarkson’s performance was necessary amid struggles from his backcourt teammates Wednesday, including another disappearing act from Mikal Bridges (five points, 27 minutes, 2-for-9 shooting, benched again in the fourth quarter) and early struggles from Jalen Brunson.
Clarkson, 33, keyed the second-half spurt that turned the tables, and the Knicks (42-25) led for the entire fourth quarter while snapping a two-game losing streak.
“For him to go out and perform the way he did, you couldn’t ask for anything better,” coach Mike Brown said. “And it goes to show he’s not just keeping his body right but his mind is in a good spot to go after coming in when you’re down [18 points] in the first half. So just to see that, you couldn’t ask for anything better. Especially from him, who is a veteran who hasn’t been playing or in the rotation and all of a sudden we need him.”
Brown credited assistant Mo Cheeks with recommending playing time Wednesday for Clarkson.
“Mo was the prophet,” Brown said. “He was right on target with it. We needed every single thing that Jordan brought to the table.”
The first quarter, though, was a disaster for the Knicks. With Josh Hart out and nursing a sore knee, Landry Shamet stepped into the starting five and the Knicks were pummeled.
They gave up 41 points in the first quarter, with Utah’s Brice Sensabaugh scoring 10 of them in just six minutes. The Knicks trailed by 15 after that opening period.
The Knicks somewhat recovered in the second quarter behind Karl-Anthony Towns, who scored 13 of his 21 points in that period. But the deficit was still nine at the break.
Then Brunson woke up, Clarkson turned back the clock, and the Jazz returned to being terrible. Brunson scored 18 of his 28 points in the second half. Clarkson shot 10-for-15 in 26 minutes and five big offensive rebounds.
“Really good comeback win,” Brown praised.
The Jazz (20-46) this season have acted like a family that reached its health insurance deductible. Their players have started racking up medical procedures.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had a growth on his knee removed. Jusuf Nurkic repaired a deviated septum to address his sleeping problems. Walker Kessler had surgery on his shoulder in November. Lauri Markkanen missed his eighth straight game with a hip impingement. They were all out.
Nobody in the Jazz’s starting lineup Wednesday was older than 22. Ace Bailey, the rookie, is only 19. But they were feisty and hitting their 3-pointers, connecting on 14-of-21 at halftime.
Then the Jazz looked their age, especially on defense. The Knicks shot 52 percent on the night, racking up 37 assists compared to just 10 turnovers while scoring 78 points in the second half.
Clarkson said the turnaround was preceded by a halftime message — first from the coaches, then from the players — to “get our s–t together.”
The game began the easiest stretch of the season for the Knicks, with seven straight opponents currently carrying losing records. Those opponents had a combined winning percentage of 31 percent before Wednesday.
Still, the Knicks needed to clean up their turnovers from the previous two games — losses to the Clippers and Lakers.
And while it took them a half, they finally got going offensively.
Thanks, in large part, to the former Utahn.
“Clarkson kept us in the game when we were down and then definitely helped us get over the hump with the performance he had,” Brown said.
