Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson said he wants to return to the Lakers. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht/Los Angeles Daily News)
Once the experiences no longer feel like a blur, Jordan Clarkson has plenty of stories he could tell about playing in Kobe Bryant’s final game that ended with a throw-back 60-point performance.
Clarkson could marvel at Bryant’s greatness. Clarkson could gush on being part of Bryant’s last play that entailed throwing a cross-court pass that ended with Clarkson dunking the ball. Clarkson could wax poetic on the large embrace Bryant gave him, D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle following the Lakers’ 101-96 win over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday at Staples Center.
That moment could arguably bring back reminders on why Clarkson intends to re-sign with the Lakers once he becomes a restricted free agent this offseason.
“I feel confident I’ll be back here. I want to be here. After seeing last night, it was crazy,” Clarkson said on Thursday after his exit meeting at the Lakers’ facility in El Segundo. “I want to be one of those guys that is not bouncing around from team to team. I want to be somewhere where I can come home and leave my mark or legacy or somewhere I can call home. I feel like this is the place I can do that.”
The Lakers will have plenty of money available with a combined $40.5 million coming off the books because of expiring contracts to Kobe Bryant and Roy Hibbert. The salary cap will also increase significantly because of the NBA’s new television deal.
How much money the Lakers will spend on Clarkson, however, remains to be seen.
Should Clarkson accept the Lakers’ one-year qualifying offer in June, he would end up as a restricted free agent again in 2017. Clarkson could explore the open market in hopes for a better deal, which the Lakers will have three days to match.
Because of those negotiations, Clarkson will reluctantly nix any hopes to play with the Philippines national team in Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Manila. Clarkson’s participation in Las Vegas Summer League also hinges on how his pending free agency plays out.
Clarkson has an extensive laundry list of items to address after averaging 15.5 points on 43.3 percent shooting in 32.3 minutes per game. Clarkson plans to train extensively with D’Angelo Rusesll and Julius Randle. Lakers coach Byron Scott and general manager Mitch Kupchak also told Clarkson in his exit meeting on Thursday to elevate his defense.
“I was horrible on the defensive end this year to be honest with you,” Clarkson said. “It’s somewhere I have to make strides. I’ll put my hard hat on and get after it this summer. To be honest, I never worked on defense.”
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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter and on Facebook. E-mail him at mark.medina@langnews.com