NBA Draft: Each team’s greatest draft pick of all-time

Greatest draft pick in LA Clippers history: Blake Griffin

Blake Griffin came into the NBA back in 2011 as one of the most hyped physical athletes the league had ever seen, with a chiseled 6’10” frame and legs that helped him sky above opponents and rims everywhere.

For the first few seasons of his career, dunking was what he did best, and it was the foundation for an exciting brand of individual basketball. On a seemingly weekly basis, Griffin would add another victim to his collection of those foolish enough to think they could fly in his airspace.

He was a dominant force around the rim, but as his career progressed, it was clear BG was making a concerted effort to expand his game beyond the restricted area. Each year, he came back better than the one before. He increased his free-throw percentage up to around 70 percent and continued to show flashes of a mid-range jumper.

Combine this ever-evolving game with the ability to run the show as if he were nine inches shorter and you get a player who was utterly unstoppable when given full reign of the offense.

The Los Angeles Clippers were a laughing stock before his arrival, and it was the Lob City trio of he, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan who helped change that, leading LA’s other basketball team to a franchise-record six consecutive postseason outings.

There was no NBA Finals appearance. There wasn’t even a showing in the conference finals, but Griffin breathed a new life into the Clippers organization, putting them on the map with his aerial assaults and his elite-level contributions to the most successful stretch of basketball in the team’s murky history.