NBA Power Rankings: All 30 Starting Centers

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Apr 19, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (6) in the second half of game one during the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs against the Golden State Warriors at Staples Center. Warriors won 109-105. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

9. DeAndre Jordan — Los Angeles Clippers

Compile a list of Defensive Player of the Year candidates for 2014-15. Los Angeles’ biggest freak in the human world better be on your note cards, or I’m snatching them out of your hand, and feeding them to the paper shredder.

Oh, and I’m doing so while giving you the “Blake face” for an hour.

Jordan has already switched his focus with the Clippers to being a feared defender in the middle, although his on-court intelligence and protection from foul trouble haven’t been top notch. During last year’s run at the West’s third seed, Jordan tallied 5.8 Defensive Win Shares, posting a career-high. What he did complete a career-low in, however, is Defensive Rating (which is a great thing), as the Clippers allowed 98 points per 100 possessions with him on the floor. It was the first time in his six years as a pro that his Defensive Rating has been below triple digits.

The single component to all of the future success will be his head coach, Doc Rivers.

Just as I raved about for Blake Griffin‘s case of a top four power forward, Rivers has been in this position before; trying to mold his frontcourt to being first tier scorers and frightful defenders at the same time.

In Boston, he had Kevin Garnett filling the scoring gap while winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2008. Griffin may not be in the category of the Big Ticket on either end, but that’s what Rivers is striving for Griffin to become.

With Jordan, he’ll always be the 6x better version of Kendrick Perkins in that team comparison, fully because of his athletic stature.

When the first humans were formed on Earth (depending on your religion), the heavenly creators didn’t intend on men being this unreal with their bodies. For all the talk of LeBron owning the strongest gifts for an NBA athlete, glance at Jordan. He’s climbed his way to the league’s most stunning pick-and-roll lob catcher, and it only makes Chris Paul‘s task easier in the offense.

There’s been numerous times — each game — that Jordan would beat opposing centers, forwards, and even guards up the floor in transition. What’s that do?

It enables Los Angeles to get more advantages in terms of members running the break, out-numbering opponents in some scenarios. Don’t let it fool you why the Clippers ranked first overall in Offensive Rating and seventh overall in Pace — they were scoring in transition, creating open 3-pointers, and doing both efficiently. It helps when most of the roster is as fast as a NASCAR motor.

Jordan’s free throw shooting last season was comparable to sequels of The Sandlot; it tried to take off and make an effort to prove people wrong, but the shoddy quality supported the public’s beliefs — he’s unsavory from the line, and it’s not changing.

You can rarely win an NBA title when you can’t trust your defensive glue to stay in the game during the fourth quarter. Hack-a-Jordan may become just as popular as the method used with Shaq.

For the sake of Los Angeles locking up enough wins to secure home-court advantage through the West, they better hope he’s put in substantial work on his worst weakness. It may not be all that goes into the formula of winning, but it’s widely unacceptable.