Houston Rockets rookie Chris Clemons scored a career-high 40 points Sunday night on assignment in the G League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers during an overtime loss to the Austin Spurs.
Clemons finished by shooting 9-of-26 from the field, including 6-of-17 from 3-point range. The undrafted guard from Campbell also added four rebounds, four steals and three assists and hit all 10 free throws attempted in the contest.
Clemons came up clutch for the Vipers late in overtime after knocking down three free throws to tie the game with just 2.9 seconds left after he was fouled from beyond the arc. However, the Spurs responded with a layup by rookie Keldon Johnston to seal the win with 0.9 seconds left.
40🍔 for @HoustonRockets assignee Chris Clemons (@idropcoldbucks)
40 PTS | 4 STL | 4 REB | 3 AST | 6 👌@GoCamelsMBB ↗️ @HoustonRockets ➡️ @RGVVipers pic.twitter.com/kAWoY29EfF
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) January 6, 2020
The 40-point outburst by Clemons topped a previous season-high of 25 points set on Dec. 20 and it is tied for the fifth-highest-scoring output by an individual player this season in the G League. Clemons is now averaging 24.7 points, 4.7 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.8 steals in six assignment games.
The Rockets converted Clemons’ contract from a two-way deal to a standard NBA contract last month after performing well in spot minutes off of the bench. Although Clemons has not seen consistent playing time this season, he has given the Rockets a boost when needed.
Clemons is averaging 5.2 points in 22 appearances in the NBA.
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