Jordan Clarkson made history after winning the NBA championship with the New York Knicks in the 2026 NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs.
Clarkson became the first Filipino player to win an NBA title after the Knicks completed a come-from-behind win against the Spurs in Game 5 on Saturday.
Clarkson, a former Sixth Man of the Year, has a Filipino-American mother. He has represented the Philippines in multiple international tournaments.
Clarkson has played 12 seasons in the NBA and is currently 34 years old.
Clarkson appeared in four of the five games in the NBA Finals for the Knicks. He averaged 7.5 minutes per game and put up 3.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.
In Game 5, he played six minutes and scored two points off the bench on 1 of 5 shooting from the field. His best performance came in Game 3, when he had 10 points in 13 minutes, albeit in a loss, the lone one for the Knicks in the series.
Jordan Clarkson Speaks About Winning An NBA Championship With the Knicks
GettySAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – JUNE 13: Karl-Anthony Towns #32 celebrates with the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy after the victory against the San Antonio Spurs in Game Five of the 2026 NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center on June 13, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Clarkson was asked about winning the NBA title shortly after Game 5. He got candid about the glee of winning his first-ever championship after over a decade in the league.
“Amazing, bro, speechless,” Clarkson said while celebrating the championship. “This is crazy, man. Just blessed, bro. I’m thankful. All years of sacrifice.”
Clarkson was a second-round pick in 2014 before making a name for himself with the LA Lakers for four years.
He was in the NBA Finals for the first time in 2018, playing alongside LeBron James with the Cleveland Cavaliers. His most successful seasons came when he played with the Utah Jazz, winning the Sixth Man of the Year award in 2021.
Now, he can call himself a champion after joining the Knicks in the offseason last year.
Jordan Clarkson Talks About Fellow Filipino Player Dylan Harper
GettySAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – JUNE 13: Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs dribbles against the New York Knicks during the second quarter in Game Five of the 2026 NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center on June 13, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Jordan Clarkson faced off against fellow Filipino-American Dylan Harper of the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals.
The two were supportive of each other, with Clarkson playing as a big brother for Harper, who is a rookie in the league and is already one of the most reliable players in the Spurs.
“One of us two [is] taking a championship back home to the Philippines and representing that well,” Clarkson said before the NBA Finals started.
“He has been really good throughout the whole year. I’ve been watching him, keeping up with him, as well, him being so young and having so much poise throughout this whole playoffs,” Clarkson added.
Harper is just 20 years old and is expected to have a long and bright career ahead of him.
Meanwhile, Clarkson is set to be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. Whether he remains in New York or moves to a different team remains to be determined.
Knicks Bench Player Jordan Clarkson Makes History After NBA Championship Win