Selected as the Lakers' No. 46 pick, the 6'5" combo guard averaged 15.8 points per game in Las Vegas, more than Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Dante Exum and even his own teammate Julius Randle—the No. 7 pick.
In fact, nine of the top 10 picks played in summer league action—the exception being Joel Embiid who is recovering from foot surgery—and Clarkson outscored them all.
The second-rounder went to Sin City with something to prove. Per Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, Clarkson said, “I have a chip on my shoulder from the draft. I feel like I was one of the better point guards in the draft, maybe the best."
Clarkson may have just leapfrogged a notch. Per Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times, the Lakers waived point guard Kendall Marshall in order to maximize cap space for the contracts of Nick Young and Jordan Hill. The Milwaukee Bucks quickly claimed Marshall off waivers.
While Marshall demonstrated great passing skills and floor vision last season, his shooting was inconsistent at times, due in part to a low-release set shot opposing players could get up and defend on.
Clarkson faced the same problem in college with an awkward low-release jumper. After declaring for the draft, he decided to do something about it, enlisting the help of skills coach Drew Hanlen, who runs the Pure Sweat Basketball clinic in St. Louis.
Per Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Hanlen began with the funky shot mechanics before moving on to other skills.
"We lifted his elbow higher," Hanlen said. "We lifted his release point. We changed the balance on his jump shot so he’s jumping straight vertical instead of tucking his knees up. We also li...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
