Just What the Clippers Ordered

I'm still trying really hard to remember the opening paragraph of that first post I wrote.  I'm highlighting the keywords in my head—improve, carefree, inhibition-less, who cares about imperfections—and trying to remind myself it is okay to post most of the content that comes to my mind, regardless of its ability to actually wow an audience.  Writing a blog and getting into that mode can be challenging.  All of the sudden during the day when you see something interesting, read something worthwhile, or randomly think of a great idea, you're caught in a daze for a couple of minutes plotting and thinking of how to put that into a paragraph with complete sentences and a fluid idea.  If you think as randomly and as bullet point-esque as I do, it can be a task.  That being said, the following might be unoriginal, mundane, and things you have already heard, read, and seen before, but I just gotta say it.

Blake Griffin.  I can already see you at your desk rolling your eyes.  "Catharine, seriously?  Who hasn't said something about Blake Griffin?"  My response to you: he is that good.  He is good enough to garner all the hype.  He is good enough for everyone and their dad to write about.  He is good enough to garner Rookie of the Year speculation.  And he is good enough for me to write yet another something else about him. 

Let me just say, I remember watching Blake Griffin at OU two years ago.  When they played UT, I was just simply like, "Who the hell is this guy?"  I mean, he was just good.  Like raw, natural, gritty talent.  When he walks on a court, he demands presence be it in the NCAA or the NBA.  He plays basketball, he gets done what needs to be done, and most importantly [for the Clippers], he puts on a show. 

So let me just bulldoze right past all the stats to my point here.  Blake Griffin, great ability and superb stats aside, is exactly what the Clippers needed as an organization.  After all, a few years back during the draft, Charles Barkley threw out his infamous "turrible" label in reference to the Clippers as an organization.  And who couldn't agree with him?  The Clippers?  Oh right, that other Los Angeles team.  That no one cares about.  And then, with a 17.7% chance of being awarded the first pick in the 2009 NBA draft lottery, the Clippers got that first pick, and in comes Blake Griffin.  After sitting out during the 2009-2010 season due to a a kneecap injury, he has exploded and taken the NBA by storm this entire season.  His ability to capture the rowdy crowds of professional basketball is everything that you hope the draft you choose will possess (and utilize).  His transition from college ball to NBA hoops has been almost as seamless as any we have ever seen.  He consistently lives up to his "#1 Draft Pick" stigma.  In last night's game against the Thunder, he grabbed his 61st double-double of the season, scoring 35 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.  I don't think the guy is going to win any three-point shootout contests anytime soon, but he did win the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest for a reason (albeit, I wasn't that impressed with the car dunk, but more impressed with the half-of-my-arm-is-in-the-basket dunk...).  But the dunks are exactly what get Clippers fans on their feet.  Every time Griffin dunks, be it backwards like in last night's game or be it monstrously over the Knicks' Timofey Mozgov, the crowd goes wild.  And that's what the Clippers franchise truly needs right now—someone to put on a show.  They don't need someone to put up back-to-back triple-doubles (though Griffin recently did put up a sick triple-double against the Wizards with 33 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists).  The loyal Clippers fans (and those who come just to see Griffin play) need gritty, showy, DID-YOU-SEE-THAT!? basketball that makes them feel like they're at the movies instead of at Staples Center. 

Sometimes, teams just need players.  I talked extensively in my last post about how Butler needed Matt Howard.  In 1978, the Celtics needed Larry Bird.  And in a really terrible attempt to try and hide my love for Dennis Rodman, the entire game of basketball needed him in the nineties.  In 2010, the Clippers needed Blake Griffin—Griffin is a new era of basketball for the Clippers.  Despite the fact that they're obviously not going to win an NBA championship title this year, the Clippers are doing just fine.  They're on the road to re-building their franchise through a player who could not have come at a more perfect time.  Blake Griffin has put that "other team" right back in the heart of LA.