Jordan Clarkson won his first NBA championship with the Knicks and will return for at least one more season. Sarah Stier / Getty ImagesJuly 9, 2026 1:09 pm EDT Updated Free-agent guard Jordan Clarkson has agreed to a one-year, minimum-salary deal worth $3.9 million to return to the NBA champion New York Knicks, league sources involved in the negotiations confirmed to The Athletic.Clarkson is coming off a season in which he averaged 8.6 points and 1.3 assists per game on 45 percent shooting from the field in 72 games. The 2025-26 season was his first with New York after his buyout with the Utah Jazz last summer.Clarkson, a veteran player known for scoring instant baskets throughout his career, posted his lowest scoring average in 2025-26 after averaging double digits in his 11 seasons prior. Before the Knicks, Clarkson spent six seasons with the Jazz; his lowest scoring average was 15.6 points a game on 46.2 percent shooting in 2019-20, his first season in Utah. Clarkson became instant offense for the Jazz and later won the Sixth Man of the Year award for the 2020-21 season.
Yet when Clarkson arrived in New York, he embraced a lower-usage role than he had in Utah, his three seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers or his four seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers. Rather than hunting shots and becoming a scoring machine off the bench, Clarkson became a complementary scorer who helped space the floor for Knicks superstar Jalen Brunson while providing a spark wherever the team needed it.ESPN first reported the news.This story will be updated.Jul 9, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms
