Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott admitted that he has been overly-impressed with Jordan Clarkson's development in his rookie year that he won't be shocked if the Missouri Tiger playmaker becomes an All-Star in the future, the Lakers head coach said in an interview with Los Angeles Daily News writer Mark Medina.
Scott, who has been known for his old-school, tough mentality, liked what he sees from Clarkson ever since he gave the rookie more playing time following Kobe Bryant's season-ending shoulder injury.
The Lakers head coach praised Clarkson's ability to orchestrate play and find his spots on offensive end, an area the coach believed the youngster can further improve on at Summer League and next season's training camp.
"Clarkson plans to play on the Lakers' Summer League team in hopes of fine-tuning his scoring and accelerating his learning curve as a playmaker. The Lakers have a team option on Clarkson for the 2015-16 season, though it seems inevitable he will return because of his potential and relatively inexpensive $845,059 salary. That all prompted Lakers coach Byron Scott to predict Clarkson "has a chance" to become an NBA All-Star."
"The more he gains experience, he will learn the pace of the game, how to slow it down and use his speed when he has to do so," Scott said. "His ceiling is pretty high."
Clarkson, the 46th overall pick by the Washington Wizards (traded to Lakers at draft night), is averaging at least 15 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists since the All-Star break to become the clear-cut steal of a very loaded draft class.
Although it's early to tell if Clarkson will blossom into an All-Star caliber player, his exploits as of late - including a 26-point, 11-assists performance against the Philadelphia 76ers this week ( a game in which he scored the game-winning layup) - suggested that sky is the limit for this explosive young star out of San Antonio.