Blake Griffin’s best 5 seasons

Table of Contents

The year is 2021, and I find myself transported back to a simpler time. We're not talking "pre-Twitter era" or even "when Bostonians thought 'Trader Danny' couldn’t make a bad move." No, we're dialing it back to those halcyon days when Blake Griffin was redefining the power forward position, one poster dunk at a time. The guy who once made Timofey Mozgov consider a career in professional chess. So, in honor of those top-shelf memories, let's roll up our sleeves and dive deep into the best five seasons of Blake Griffin's NBA career. And not just any deep dive – we're talking Jacques Cousteau levels here.

1. 2013-2014: The Emergence of Point-Blake

Ah, the 2013-2014 season. It's the "Dark Knight" of Blake’s career. Coming off his first All-Star year, many saw Blake as a high-flying, dunk-first, ask-questions-later type of player. But this was the year he proved he was more Christian Bale than Adam West. Averaging 24.1 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 3.9 assists, Griffin was like if Charles Barkley and Magic Johnson had a basketball baby. But let’s look closer. His usage rate was at a solid 29.3%. That's higher than LeBron's in his first season back with Cleveland. While his assists didn't skyrocket, it’s worth noting he was making better decisions with the ball. Those Clippers half-court sets where he'd get the ball at the elbow, scan the floor like a Terminator, then either bully his way to the basket or find the open man? Poetry in motion. Poetry that dunked.

2. 2010-2011: The Freshman Phenomenon

Remember that feeling when you watched "The Matrix" for the first time and thought, “Whoa!”? That was Blake's rookie year. The NBA hadn’t seen anything quite like it. An emphatic 22.5 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game. Oh, and did I mention the 214 dunks? That’s more than some teams had! But it wasn’t just about the stats; it was the audacity of his play. The poor souls who tried to take charges? They became footnotes in his highlight reel. What's intriguing is that while his raw numbers were gaudy, advanced stats like his PER of 21.9 showcased that he wasn't just a flash in the pan. For rookies, those are "I just downloaded all of The Beatles' albums" level numbers.

3. 2014-2015: The Multifaceted Maestro

Just when you thought he was done evolving, like a Pokémon, Blake added another layer. In the 2014-2015 season, Griffin was less like Thor smashing his hammer and more like Tony Stark with a new suit of armor – sleeker, smarter, and with more gadgets. He averaged 21.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and a career-high 5.3 assists. And here’s the kicker – his 3-point attempts nearly doubled from the previous season. Was he Steph Curry from downtown? No, but it was like watching Vin Diesel suddenly star in an indie drama. It wasn't expected, but it worked. Griffin's shift towards playmaking gave guys like JJ Redick ample room to shoot, transforming the Clippers' offense from "Hey, let’s dunk this" to "Hey, let's dunk this...or find the open three."

4. 2018-2019: The Detroit Renaissance

In the 2018-2019 season, Blake was like Matthew McConaughey in the "McConaissance." Traded from the sunny beaches of LA to the grit of Detroit, he turned in a performance that could make even a Pistons fan forget about the Billups era (okay, maybe not, but bear with me). With a stat line of 24.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 5.4 assists, his usage rate ballooned to a whopping 29.8%. And the threes? Oh, the threes. He took 7 attempts a game, sinking them at a 36.2% clip. It was like watching John Wick swap his pistol for a sniper rifle. Efficient and deadly from afar.

5. 2016-2017: The Injury Comeback Kid

After an injury-riddled 2015-2016 season that felt more like a season of "Grey's Anatomy" than NBA basketball, Griffin roared back. Averaging 21.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists, the stats were solid, but it was the intangibles that stood out. It felt like watching Rocky get up after being knocked down by Clubber Lang. There's no advanced stat for heart, but if there was, Blake's would be off the charts.

In closing, Blake Griffin's prime was like binge-watching a great Netflix series. High-flying dunks, a growing arsenal of skills, and plot twists that kept us glued to our screens. Whether he was posterizing defenders or dishing out dimes, Griffin's prime years were a masterclass in evolution, heart, and raw athleticism. And just like the best shows, it left us yearning for more.