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Remember when Blake Griffin was “just a dunker?” That was never quite accurate. Even during his first couple of years in the league, the Los Angeles Clippers superstar scored with a bit more variety than the casual basketball fan gave him credit. Now, though, it’s almost impossible to believe that former reputation ever existed at all.
Griffin had 34 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists in his short-handed team’s 101-96 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday afternoon, using the absence of Chris Paul to show off the all-court game that’s propelled him to MVP candidacy. He shot 14-of-25 overall and mostly feasted near the rim, but also connected on four of his seven long two-point attempts.
For the season, Griffin is now shooting 44.6 percent on two-pointers outside the paint. Not too shabby, right? He’s hardly sacrificed any finishing prowess to stretch his game closer to the arc, either: Griffin’s 71.1 percent shooting in the restricted area ranks third among players who take at least five shots per game from that hallowed ground.
But none of his dunks, jumpers, or passes at Staples Center on Sunday were quite so astonishing as this mind-bending escape from the corner. How did the 26-year-old leave Marcus Morris in the dust and Anthony Tolliver on the floor?
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Reminder: Griffin stands 6’10 and weighs a chiseled 251 pounds.
Wild.
