Blake Griffin’s game becoming too predictable; Los Angeles Clippers need him to expand – NBA Feature
Blake Griffin has been making a great deal of news recently, for the right as well as the wrong reasons. However, no matter what way you want to see it, he does have the attention of the whole NBA and the fans. In a new look and improved Los Angeles Clippers sides, Griffin has thrived.
Blake has in the last two years, emerged as the biggest dunking sensation, NBA has seen since Vinsanity, but the fact remains that Griffin is a one dimensional player whose biggest ability is to leap and flush. Well somebody should tell Blake that this is the NBA, not the AND1 tour or ESPN’s highlight reel. The muscular show Griffin presented till last year when the Clippers were not considered as championship contenders, was fine, but if he continues to live the game as he likes, he is not going to get very far in his career.
The upcoming post season can turn out to be very quick reality check and we might see Blake and company’s party spoiled much sooner than expected. The recent game against Memphis Grizzlies and then against the Western Conference leaders Oklahoma City Thunder serve as a good indicator of the argument.
Grizzlies are a tough physical team and going into the game, they knew LAC’s style of play – lob the ball to Griffin to score or else shoot from the perimeter. Memphis were having none of it that night. With a huge presence inside the paint, they succeeded in shutting down Griffin’s passage towards the rim more often than not, and the end result was a stroll towards victory.
The Clippers failed to adjust to the situation in that game, but in the encounter against OKC, they went with a plan B, one that put the offensive focus on Chris Paul. The result was a clutch win, with CP3 sinking a triple right at the death. Griffin did score 16 points in that game, but also had seven assists, which was something Thunder were not expecting. In short, with Griffin tweaking his games, the Clips became unpredictable and that is what they will need come the playoffs.
In addition to that, Griffin needs to improve certain aspects of his game. Blake is averaging 20.6 points and 10.9 rebounds per game so far this season. That is the good bit of his game. The bad bit is that he is averaging 52.4% from the foul line, only managing 0.7 blocks per game and does not have a jump shot. He is so limited in the options he has in his arsenal that only a player like Chris Paul can enable him to score the big numbers on a nightly basis.
On the other hand, we have a power forward who in his 4th year in NBA, is already in the MVP talk of the season. He is Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Love, despite being at a disadvantage of not being in a successful team like the Clippers and not having Chris Paul as point guard, is averaging 26 points and 13.3 rebounds per game.
That is a whole lot more than Griffin. And, he is 82.4% from the foul line for the season, 37.2% from the 3 point line to add to a killer jump shot. Kevin Love does not have the athleticism and quickness of Griffin but he does not need it. He is already a much more balanced and well rounded player than Griffin.
Griffin’s inability to hit three’s and jump shots makes him very predictable and easy to mark. Any good defensive team will box him out and make him irrelevant in the game. Also, his inability to hit free throws will have him sitting out of the crucial final minutes of the game.
Not only is that a problem for the team, Griffin would also not like to be on the bench when game changing moments are being played on the court. That would eventually make him a bench player rather than a starter.
We all know that Kevin Love is a better power forward than Griffin but the purpose here is not to compare the two and give a verdict. The purpose here is to highlight the weaknesses in Griffin’s game. Only if Blake finds a way to counter his weaknesses offensively and start contributing more on the defensive end will he be able to live up to the hype he has created for himself and win championships.
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