PLAYA VISTA, Calif. — It’s a sleepy afternoon as Jordan Clarkson—dressed in spotless white vans, modishly torn jeans and a self-graffitied white hoodie—plops down for lunch.
The most consistent player on a Los Angeles Lakers team that’s won 38 games since he was drafted, Clarkson is about to enter the busiest, most pivotal and financially significant summer of his life. On May 26, Nike ships him to Manila, Philippines. Then it’s off to Beijing on behalf of NBA Cares until the first week of June.
The philanthropic travels mean a lot to Clarkson, but just as notable is his looming restricted free agency on July 1.