SALT LAKE CITY — Jazz rookie guard Walter Clayton Jr. is entering the NBA with a reputation.
“His MO is hitting big shots,” Jazz summer league head coach Scott Morrison said.
Just look at his run with Florida during the team’s march to the national championship in spring.
There was the 3-pointer with just over a minute left in Florida’s 77-75 win over UConn in the second round. Then the two 3-pointers in the final two minutes of a comeback win over Texas Tech.
In the Final Four, he went on a personal 5-0 run in the final two minutes to lift Florida past Auburn. And in the national title game, his 3-pointer with 3:13 remaining tied the game.
He ran through March (and April) leaving a trail of broken hearts behind him.
That run has only continued in Salt Lake City.
With 2:31 left on Tuesday, Clayton drilled a 3-pointer to give the Jazz a lead it never relinquished in an 86-82 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the SLC Summer League finale.
He’s done something similar in each of Utah’s three summer league games. Three quasi-NBA contests, three clutch shots.
“It’s kind of his reputation to make big shots — and he certainly lived up to that in his first three games,” Morrison said. “Hopefully, he can get a little bit more consistent. Great shooters always believe they’ll make the next one, and if he didn’t have great shooting ability, great confidence, he wouldn’t be able to hit those three big 3s in each game.”
Clayton apparently has a short memory, too.
With Brice Sensabaugh returning to Salt Lake after two strong performances in Las Vegas, Clayton was pushed into the starting lineup for the first time.
The first half didn’t go as planned: He went 1-of-9 from the field, including 1-of-6 from 3-point range.
“Just gotta get my legs under me; that’s gonna come with games,” he said. “So that’s why we’re out here playing summer league.”
After halftime, he went 4-of-5, including the biggest shot of the night.
The secret to those clutch moments?
“I don’t know, honestly,” he said. “I’m just glad they are going in.”
On Tuesday, he got a little help from the coaching staff, too.
Midway through the fourth quarter, as the Thunder erased an 18-point deficit to take the lead, Clayton looked very much like a rookie. He was stripped in the backcourt on two straight possessions, then fumbled the ball out of bounds on a third.
The length of Oklahoma City’s Malevy Leons was absolutely tormenting him — serving as an early welcome-to-the-NBA moment, and an early learning experience.
“I’m going to have to get used to some of the pressure,” he said. “At the college level, some guys weren’t as aggressive as they are now on me, so just getting used to that.”
Morrison took him out to let him reset. From the bench, he watched how Isaiah Collier handled the pressure and protected the ball. Collier had a rough night on Monday, but responded with a much more composed performance Tuesday, including making better reads inside.
“He only had six assists, but I feel like if we shot the ball well in the first half, he would have had at least 10,” Morrison said.
It proved to be a good example for Clayton. And when the Florida product checked back in, he was ready to do what he’s always done: hit a big shot.
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