Since leaving the Florida Gators for the NBA, Walter Clayton Jr. has experienced the highs and the lows of NBA life. After some up and down usage, Clayton Jr. had seemingly carved out a role coming off the bench for the Utah Jazz, though his playing time had taken a notable dip over the past seven games.
But life comes at you fast in the NBA, and with Utah’s season spiraling downwards, Clayton Jr. was swept up in an eight-player trade that will see him in a new home to finish out his rookie season.
Walter Clayton Jr. traded to Memphis
Utah traded Clayton Jr. to Memphis as part of an eight-player trade on the eve of the NBA trade deadline. Jarden Jackson Jr. was the focal point of the trade as he will be going from Memphis to Utah. Clayton Jr. is one of four Jazz players on the move, as well as three first-round draft picks heading to Memphis.
For Clayton Jr. specifically, this could open the door for a massive role increase, especially if Memphis also trades Ja Morant before the deadline. It also means he is going to be stuck with a franchise that will be officially rebuilding for the foreseeable future.
After leading Florida to the national title in 2025, Clayton Jr. was drafted 18th overall by Utah. It’s somewhat surprising to see Utah make this move to trade Clayton Jr., considering they themselves moved up on draft night to land him.
Clayton Jr. is averaging 18 minutes a night and has averaged 6.8 points per game. His three-point shooting has struggled, but it has also gotten better as the season progressed. He is also averaging 3.2 assists per game against 1.3 turnovers per game.
But Clayton Jr. was starting to see a bit of an increased role with Utah and played 32 minutes as recently as January 19th. Since that game, he has only been north of 20 minutes once in Utah’s past eight games, and he saw just seven minutes of action against Golden State last Wednesday.
Utah has also lost 16 of its last 18 games.