WRG Mock Draft: #1, Los Angeles Clippers

ghoti and myself will be conducting a mock draft, taking turns picking for teams. To be clear, this is not how we predict the draft to go, but rather we will be taking the approach that we are the GM for that team, and if we were in that position, this is who we would draft, as if we are in charge.
Without further ado, I'll start it off with the Los Angeles Clippers and the first overall pick.

With the first overall pick, the Los Angeles Clippers select:



Blake Griffin, PF, Oklahoma

If you have the #1 pick, you take the best player, period. Blake Griffin is far and away the best prospect in this draft. With a stunning combination of power and athleticism, he looks like a perennial all-star for years to come. Easy choice.

The Memphis Grizzlies are on the clock.

Height, Length, Width

The annual list of pre-draft measurements were released this week, and of course there were numbers that came out that weren't expected. Some of the surprises were positive, and some were negative. Many prospects' stocks rose and dipped because of these measurements, which leads me to think, how much do these measurements really matter, and how much should they matter.

Power Forward DeJuan Blair measured just over 6-5 without shoes. This was a guy who we saw have a great year at Pittsburgh, but now that the news that he's only 6-5 come out, many people want to discount him. Others want to say, it's ok, because he has a wingspan of a player who is a few inches taller, or his standing reach is better than average.
This is the same 6 foot 5 inch DeJuan Blair who outmuscled and dominated the 7 foot 1 inch Hasheem Thabeet during a meeting between Pitt and UConn this year. Apparently his lack of height didn't hurt him in that game, but now that the news is out, I guess we should all expect DeJuan Blair to have no shot to compete in the NBA, since he's, you know, only 6 foot 5.

Blake Griffin is the conensus best player in the draft, and expected to go #1 overall, but he only has an average wingspan for his height. Surely that makes the Clippers feel less confident about selecting him with the #1 pick. Forget that he won 4 different national player of the year awards, he has average sized arms.

We also found out that Ty Lawson has alligator arms. While Lawson and Jonny Flynn are the same exact height, surely Flynn is the better prospect since he has a wingspan of over 3 inches more. Forget that Ty Lawson ran the best team in college basketball last year, and improved across the board from his sophomore to junior year. His tiny arms definitely are a hinderance to his pro career.

Speaking of wingspan, DeJuan Blair has a huge wingspan. So he's short, but has a wingspan of a player a half foot taller. Does his wingspan cancel out his lack of ideal height for the power forward spot? His wingspan is a positive, but his height is a negative, so I guess we're back to square one. Blair's wingspan is a half an inch bigger than Jordan Hill's wingspan, and Hill is 4 inches taller. What do you make of that? I don't know what to make of it, I'll tell you that much, but what I can make of all of this is that this list sends the masses of draftniks and fans into a frenzy about how players are rising and falling, based on black and white numbers, while their skill-sets and accomplishments throughout the season are momentarily forgotten.

Just ask Saer Sene. >>

Blake Griffin, Welcome to the Black Hole

And with the first pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Los Angeles Clippers select...Blake Griffin!

"Clearly, we're taking Blake Griffin," Clippers General Manager and Coach Mike Dunleavy said in a telephone interview from Barcelona, Spain.

"This guy is the No. 1 pick. We're extremely excited. He's the guy."

Could a worse situation have presented itself for Blake? The Clippers have a log jam in the front court, with Zach Randolph, Chris Kaman, and Marcus Camby as three of the Clippers four highest paid players. Zach Randolph, exclusively a PF, like Blake, is the highest paid player on the Clips roster. Obvious wisdom says trade Randolph, but with Randolph being owed over $33 million over the next 2 years, that's not an easy task. Add in Randolph's persistent run-in's with the law, a malcontent attitude, and lack of defensive prowess, and it's almost impossible to find a team that would be willing to take him at that cost.

The second problem for Blake...it's the Clippers. One of the most inept basketball franchises in the NBA. Mike Dunleavy, coach and GM, good at neither. Donald Sterling, notoriously thrifty owner. Second fiddle in their own city. One playoff series win since 1978. Is there a more depressing franchise?

Congratulations Mr. Griffin, you're going to be a Los Angeles Clipper!