At this point it’s old news, but if you didn’t know Blake will be taking his talents to Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s humor-filled website (courtesy of ESPN LA):
NEW YORK — Stymied by the NBA lockout, Blake Griffin is going to work for Will Ferrell instead.
This week, the Los Angeles Clippers All-Star forward is interning at Funny Or Die, the comedy website co-founded by Ferrell and Adam McKay. Griffin arrived at the site’s LA offices Tuesday to begin three days of work in video production.
Found Objects – 8.23.2011
• Finally, the ranking we’ve all been waiting for (or at least I have). Here’s Royce Young of CBS Sport’s Eye On Basketball Blog discussing Blake at #10:
10. Blake Griffin, PF, age 22, Los Angeles Clippers
2011 stats: 22.5 ppg, 12.1 rpg, 3.8 apg, 50.6 FG%, 21.93 PER
Composite rankings (random order): 10, 10, 15It’s not all about the dunks. You just have to tell yourself that. It is not, all about the dunks. Yeah, I realize Blake Griffin’s rookie season will be most remembered more for his instant YouTube classics than for a pretty drop-step layup, but that’s really what it was about. Blake Griffin is an excellent dunker, yes. But he’s a better basketball player.
His numbers were terrific and not just for a rookie. For anybody. He went for 22.5 points and 12.1 rebounds per game. That’s not just in the category of “Wow, nice rookie year, now let’s see what he does next.” That’s in the “Wow, how can he do much better than that?”
Griffin is extremely skilled but what makes him so special is that he’s willing to outwork everyone on the floor. He plays harder than everybody while possessing otherworldly ability for a man 6-10. Every time he skies recklessly for a rebound or dives wildly on the floor you fear the worst, but that’s what makes Blake Griffin the player he is. He plays the game in a violent, relentless manner. And on top of it, he adds top tier skill and talent with it.
He has some room to grow of course. He needs to refine his jumpshot where he’s effective in the pick-and-pop game. He needs to shoot better from the free throw line. He needs to be a bit better in help defense. He should impact games on both ends. But naturally he should improve. He’s just 22 and just finished his rookie year.
I love to point to his best game of the season, his 47-point effort against the Pacers. He didn’t dunk the ball once in that game. Instead it was an array of spins, jumpers, hooks and deft layups that took him to his career-high. His full-court oops and massive posters bring in the oohs and ahhs, but games like he had against the Pacers is what shows you that he’s going to be one of the league best players over the next 10 years. – RY
• If you haven’t read Charlie’s second piece on the Clippers-Thunder comparisons, I recommend you do so.
• Another Chris Kaman update. Check out video of him against Belgian from Friday’s match-up.
• Grantland’s Malcolm Gladwell explaining the difference between the ‘phsycic benefits’ and the financial benefits of owning a sports team. Great read.
Twitter: @JovanBuha
Blake Griffin and Kevin Durant give Neil Olshey and Sam Presti permission to think big, but it’s the presence of their second-best players, Russell Westbrook and Eric Gordon, that completes the most basic foundation of a championship core. Whereas one great player constitutes a future, two makes “rebuilding” a thing of the past.
Found Objects – 8.21.2011
• Yesterday’s showdown between the Drew League and Goodman League was a classic, with the Goodman League ultimately eking out a 135-134 victory. TrueHoop’s Beckley Mason and Kyle Weidie capture the game’s true essence in their must-read pieces.
• Despite their loss, the Drew League wants a rematch in L.A. in September (check out Javale McGee’s block and Craig Smith’s missed dunk, along with the rest of the top-10 plays)
• TrueHoop’s Hornets247 came up with a few trade scenarios to help improve the Hornets’ current squad. After one particular trade, they like the idea of pursuing DeAndre Jordan with their loads of cap space:
Found Objects – 8.20.2011
• At 3 p.m. Pacific today, the much anticipated match-up between LA’s Drew League and D.C.’s Goodman League will take place. As you know, the Clippers’ Craig “Rhino” Smith will be representing his hometown of LA. The game wouldn’t be taking place, though, if it weren’t for Kevin Durant. And if you haven’t read it yet, be sure to check out Beckley Mason’s TrueHoop piece on the Goodman League’s commissioner Miles Rawls.
• ClipperBlog’s founding father Kevin Arnovitz explores the different options the NBA would have for determining the draft lottery in case the entire season is lost. Spoiler alert: one option may have no Draft at all.
• SB Nation’s Mike Prada ranks the NBA’s coaches #1-#30. Vinny Del Negro came in at 26th, which ranked dead last among coaches with prior head coaching experience (Tyrone Corbin, Kevin McHale and Mark Jackson were placed in TBD due to either little or no head coaching experience; the T-Wolves currently don’t have a coach).
• A few funny aggregations (and this one) of Blake’s interview with the Champs podcast have arisen because of the following quote:
“We’re playing the Knicks and I was walking back. It was a timeout, walking back to a free throw. You know how guys line up on the free throw line. And like, I had this horrible, horrible gas that whole game and so I let it go as I was walking back … And I line up, and look over and one of them is like, ‘Oh my gosh, what is that?’ And I looked at him and I was so worried that everybody was going to catch on, so I was like, ‘Who did that? Oh my god! Are you serious?’”
• Chris Kaman had an impressive 17 points and 9 rebounds in a German victory over Belgian (although Dirk had to correct some of Kaman’s movements).
• Randy Foye is the league’s 46th worst role player, because he’s not Willie Green.
• Mo Williams is working out with Chase Budinger, Richard Jefferson and Deron Williams during the lockout.
• After Blake expressed displeasure with his iPhone via Twitter, Director of Windows Phone Apps Brandon Watson proposed him “The Windows Phone Challenge”… and Blake accepted it.
• Mark your calendars folks. On Saturday August 27th, Blake Griffin will be attending the Oklahoma Sooner alumni basketball game.
Twitter: @JovanBuha