Los Angeles Clippers: 5 goals for Blake Griffin in 2017-18

2. Average over 10 rebounds per game

Collecting rebounds seemed to come easily for Blake Griffin.

In his debut season, Griffin pulled down 12.1 rebounds per game, becoming just the 24th rookie in league history, and first since Shaquille O’Neal in 1992-93, to average over 12 rebounds in their initial season.

For a variety of reasons, the rebounding numbers have slipped for Griffin, as he pulled down just 8.1 rebounds a game last year — the second-lowest total of his career.

Part of the reason for the decline in rebounding has been the presence of center DeAndre Jordan, as his 816 defensive rebounds marked the third time in the past four years he’s led the league in the category.

Along with Jordan’s ability to collect missed shot attempts, Chris Paul totaled 4.3 defensive rebounds a night, an especially impressive figure considering he is listed at just 6’0″ tall.

While rebounding may not have been as much of a priority for Griffin over the past few years, as he hasn’t posted a double digit rebounding total in five years, the Clippers will need any advantage they can get to qualify for the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season.

On both ends of the floor, Griffin will need to be a massive rebounding force.