3. Oklahoma City Thunder – Blake Griffin, Oklahoma
With the third pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Oklahoma City Thunder select Blake Griffin, from Oklahoma.
One of the best athletes the NBA has ever seen. For his career, Blake averages 21.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game, on 50-33-69 shooting splits, and a career PER of 22. His resume includes six All-Star appearances, five All-NBA teams, an All-Rookie team, a Rookie of the Year award, and a Slam Dunk Contest champion.
After sitting out his rookie season due to a knee injury, Blake Griffin took the league by storm in 2010-2011. He averaged 23 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists on 51 percent shooting in his rookie campaign, good enough to earn him a place on the All-Star team, as well as ROTY honors. Blake went on to be an All-Star each of the next four seasons as well. And then he was bitten by the injury bug.
Since the 2015-16 season, Griffin has missed 163 games (32.6 games per season). While his numbers have remained great, Blake has had a difficult time staying on the court.
When he is not injured, Griffin is one of the best players in the league. He has been able to adapt to the changing state of the NBA, with his 3-point percentage going from 27 percent on 0.4 attempts per game in the first six years of his career, to 34 percent on five attempts per game since 2016-17. Not bad for someone who made a name for himself as a dunker as a part of the “Lob City” Clippers.
That being said, Blake Griffin is one of the most vicious dunkers in the history of the league.
If not for all the injuries, it feels safe to say that Blake Griffin would have been named to several more All-Star and All-NBA teams. Even still in spite of his injuries, Blake Griffin has had an incredible career.
Blake Griffin goes third to the Thunder in the class of 2009 redraft.