He's played one game and there's no need to get carried away, but follow me on this one...
There's lots of similarities between the two, like the fact that they both went to OU, where they enjoyed a tremendous amount of success. They were high draft picks (AP #7, Blake #1) and both are flat out physical freaks.
Watching the Clips-Blazers game last night, I was reminded of why I'm a huge admirer of Blake's game and loved the effort and intensity he brought to each contest while at OU. I couldn't help but cringe though every time Blake fell to the floor. Coming off the knee injury last season, I know I felt as did many NBA pundits that it was only a matter of time before before Blake suffered a serious injury. Other than the obvious fact that he had fallen under the curse that plagues lottery picks that are forwards that play for the Clips, Blake's playing style isn't pretty. He gets after every loose ball. He dives into the stands. He attacks every rebound and lob with reckless abandon. He never takes a play off and has earned a reputation for physically asserting his dominance over his opponent. Sound familiar?
Let's go back to AP's rookie season in '07. Everyone was enamored with AP's running talent, but in every Vikes game you'd watch, one of the commentators would mention that AP's running style and physicality didn't lend itself to a long career. I remember every time AP went down that year and in '08, I wondered if that was the time he wouldn't get back up, was this the time he gets helped off the field. I'm not even a Vikes fan, so I can't imagine what purple nation felt, but the point is, I feel the exact same way when I watch Blake Griffin.
Both are amazing talents and I feel that provided he's healthy, Griffin will ascend to the top of the pecking order as far as power forwards go in The Association. I hope both have long, injury-free careers, but I just don't know if they're built for longevity.
There's lots of similarities between the two, like the fact that they both went to OU, where they enjoyed a tremendous amount of success. They were high draft picks (AP #7, Blake #1) and both are flat out physical freaks.
Watching the Clips-Blazers game last night, I was reminded of why I'm a huge admirer of Blake's game and loved the effort and intensity he brought to each contest while at OU. I couldn't help but cringe though every time Blake fell to the floor. Coming off the knee injury last season, I know I felt as did many NBA pundits that it was only a matter of time before before Blake suffered a serious injury. Other than the obvious fact that he had fallen under the curse that plagues lottery picks that are forwards that play for the Clips, Blake's playing style isn't pretty. He gets after every loose ball. He dives into the stands. He attacks every rebound and lob with reckless abandon. He never takes a play off and has earned a reputation for physically asserting his dominance over his opponent. Sound familiar?
Let's go back to AP's rookie season in '07. Everyone was enamored with AP's running talent, but in every Vikes game you'd watch, one of the commentators would mention that AP's running style and physicality didn't lend itself to a long career. I remember every time AP went down that year and in '08, I wondered if that was the time he wouldn't get back up, was this the time he gets helped off the field. I'm not even a Vikes fan, so I can't imagine what purple nation felt, but the point is, I feel the exact same way when I watch Blake Griffin.
Both are amazing talents and I feel that provided he's healthy, Griffin will ascend to the top of the pecking order as far as power forwards go in The Association. I hope both have long, injury-free careers, but I just don't know if they're built for longevity.
