Our exit interview series on the 2026 Clippers continues with a look at breakout third-year guard Jordan Miller.
Basic Information
Height: 6’5
Weight: 195 pounds
Position: Shooting Guard/Small Forward
Age: 26
Years in NBA: 3
Key Regular Season Stats (for Clippers): 10 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.8 steals, and 1.1 turnovers in 22.1 minutes per game across 60 games played (1 start) on 53.1/34.5/77.7 (1.8 3PA, 2.9 FTA) shooting splits (62.8 True Shooting)
Expectations
It wasn’t even a certainty that Jordan would be on the Clippers’ roster when training camp began, as he was on a two-way for the third year in a row and the competition for the two-way spots in camp was expected to be stiff. Still, the expectation was that Jordan would serve in a similar role to his 2025 season, when he mostly played in garbage time and entered the rotation only in spot situations due to injury or slumps. While Jordan had some moments in the 2025 season, he played most of his minutes early on and was not a factor when the Clippers went on their end-of-season run. There was no real reason to think the 2026 season would be much different, not with all of the veteran guards and forwards the Clippers added in the 2025 offseason.
Reality
Like so many Clippers, Jordan was injured early on in the season. He missed the first 10 games with a hamstring injury, returned for a three-game stint, and then was ruled out again for a lengthy period (seven games) with a back injury. He played one game in the midst of that injury, but was quickly ruled out again for another four games. Thus, Jordan played in just four of the Clippers’ first 25 games.
By the time Jordan had returned, therefore, the Clippers’ season was already firmly in the tank. Their veteran guards and wings had disappointed, and there was ample opportunity for the younger players to grab minutes. Unfortunately, Jordan got off to a slow start, scoring in double figures in just one of the first 11 games that he played. He was only in the rotation for six of those games, and even though the scoring was lacking, he continuously chipped in on the glass and as a help defender. In previous seasons, when Jordan wasn’t scoring, he wasn’t playable, and that changed this season.
Finally, with his sea legs under him, Jordan got going. Beginning on January 9, he scored in double figures in nine of his next 10 games, with the one “miss” being a nine-point outing. He made his threes, but most importantly, he showed a downhill scoring ability that every Clipper outside of James Harden lacked. Some of Jordan’s issues remained – his defense was inconsistent and he could be single-minded in scoring without having much of an eye for playmaking for others – but the scoring assistance off the bench was huge in turning the Clippers’ season around.
Jordan’s role got a little shakier after the trade deadline, as Bennedict Mathurin came in and took the scoring guard sixth-man spot in the rotation. However, after a quiet couple of weeks, Jordan found his rhythm again at the end of February, and was pretty steadily good the entire rest of the season. The Clippers as a team were not consistent, but Jordan was good for scoring in the 10-14 point range seemingly every game, usually on good efficiency.
One great thing about Jordan this year was that the more minutes he got, the better he played. In the 36 games in which he logged 20 to 29 minutes, Jordan averaged 12.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists on 64% True Shooting. In five games when he received 30 to 39 minutes, Jordan’s averages leaped to 14 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while maintaining the 64% True Shooting. The rebounding, efficiency, and playmaking along with improved defensive acumen made Jordan a legitimately positive impact player in his third season, a massive leap after a rookie year when he barely played in the NBA and a sophomore campaign where he quickly faded after a hot start.
Another key element to Jordan’s play this past season was reliability and availability. After missing all of those games early, Jordan was healthy basically the entire rest of the season, missing just one game late due to a back flare-up. On a roster that dealt with so many nagging injuries, you knew that Jordan would be out there getting buckets. Consistency has never been more important in the NBA (in this writer’s opinion, anyway), and Jordan was nothing if not consistent this year. What a season for Jordan.
Future with Clippers
Jordan is under contract for the 2027 season at a minimum salary that is just under $2.5M. Considering how well he played in 2026, that contract is a steal. With three years in the organization, Jordan is a well-known and liked presence, and I’d imagine the Clippers would like to get him on a longer-term contract to keep him on the team through the rest of his 20s. The question is whether Jordan would like that as well, or whether he’d prefer to enter free agency next summer for the first time. Either way, he will likely be on the Clippers this upcoming season in a reserve scorer role, and hopefully can continue improving on his breakout campaign.
