Blake Griffin as OU blessing
Published: 10/23/2008 9:41 AM
Last Modified: 10/23/2008 9:41 AM
OKLAHOMA CITY -- The first thing you notice at Big 12 basketball media day is who's missing.
Texas' D.J. Augustin could be here. And Kansas' Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur and Mario Chalmers. And K-State's Michael Beasley and Bill Walker.
Instead, they're making money playing ball. Good for them.
And great for Oklahoma.
Blake Griffin is the only star still around. Among players milling around the Cox Convention Center this morning, he is a towering presence, figuratively and literally. He is a walking blessing for coach Jeff Capel, the biggest reason the Sooners are Big 12 preseason favorites for the first time ever.
Seems a decent time to recall something The Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy wrote recently. He explains it better than I ever could...
"Griffin's decision to return for his sophomore season runs counter to almost everything we've seen in basketball over the past decade, which has exalted the NBA draft as the sport's high holiday -- even though it rarely has the transformative impact upon league franchises that the NFL version does for its teams...
"In advance of the declaration deadline, there were multiple reports quoting NBA sources that suggested Griffin could go as high as No. 3 in the 2008 draft.
"Griffin, though, would prefer not just to be valued on draft night, but on game night. He is a remarkable physical specimen. Watching him dart around the court and leaping above the rim instantly suggests we're watching 6-7 small forward -- but the measuring tape insists he is, in fact, 6-10. The scale says he is 243 pounds. That's every inch and every pound a power forward's body.
"He'd like to spend another year -- not another season, another year -- building elements of both positions into his game. It's not all about shooting. He should have an overall focus on improving his arsenal of weapons and learning how to dominate. He always has been such an overpowering athlete he hasn't needed much of a game to excel. Griffin gets a lot of his points in transition and from offensive rebounds.
"'He's going to be a good NBA player based on his natural athletic ability,' said Fran Fraschilla, who analyzes Big 12 games for ESPN. 'He could be an NBA All-Star if his skill level improves.'
"That Griffin understands and values the difference certainly makes him unusual, almost unique, among today's players."
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
