After a 45 game hiatus amid injury and controversy, Los Angeles Clippers’ fans got to see Blake Griffin back in action on April 3rd against the Washington Wizards. The Clippers have remained fourth in the West since losing Griffin to a partially torn quadriceps tendon – an accomplishment which only testifies to the stubborn leadership of Chris Paul and the rest of the Clippers’ supporting cast. LA have done as much they could have without him up to this point but will no doubt welcome the return of their team’s highest scorer. So, with two games under his belt since Christmas, how do the Clippers look entering the play offs with Blake Griffin back in action?
With Chris Paul averaging almost 20 points and 10 assists a game, DeAndre Jordan regularly dropping double-doubles, and J.J. Redick shooting the highest three-point percentage in the league, it is clear that the Clippers have established a decent rhythm in the absence of Griffin. This makes it all the more difficult to reintegrate a player who had a usage rate of 30.2 before being sidelined; only 10 players currently end more possessions with the ball in their hands to put this statistic in perspective. Against the Wizards, it became clear that Griffin was no longer the focal point of the Clippers’ offense. The box score looked much the same as it has been since Christmas; Paul finished with 27 points and 12 assists, Jordan and 12 points and 12 rebounds and Redick scored 18 points with 7 made shots from 13 attempts.
Realizing his physical limitations, Griffin was limited to a conservative 24 minutes on the court. This is not unreasonable as he looks to regain the conditioning he lost while injured. Ending the game, he had 6 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Again, these numbers are what you might expect from a player who has not laced-up for over three months. But while his scoring tally was not all too flattering, other numbers showed us the immense impact his return will have for the Clippers’ playoff run; Griffin ended up with a plus/minus of plus-22 on the floor. Paul himself admitted after the game that there was a certain confidence that came with Griffin’s presence on the court.
It was no mistake that Griffin’s first big play of the game was a give-and-go drop-off pass, assisting Luc Mbah a Moute on the way to the rim for a lay up. Soon afterwards, he then fed J.J. Redick for an easy step-back jumper and looked to be playing for his teammates rather than taking matters into his own hands. Although his scoring tally left much to be desired, Griffin’s first points came from a back-court lob pass from Paul, which he emphatically flushed through the hoop with both hands. For fans this was a welcomed flashback to his all-star form. On the whole, however, Griffin missed 5 of 7 shots, but his presence on the floor drew regular double-teams and led to easy, open baskets for his teammates.
A similar story unfolded in their following game; a rivalry match-up against the Los Angeles Lakers. Griffin played for even less time on the night; not even 17 minutes in what was a blowout win for the Clippers. He only scored 4 points, grabbed 3 rebounds and dished out another 3 assists. With a poor performance by the Clippers’ bench, Blake Griffin once again highlighted his dominant presence on the floor with a plus/minus of plus-27. Having won by 22 points against the Lakers, it would seem that Griffin’s presence made a huge difference in his team’s win, even while being on relatively restricted minutes.
In many ways, the absence of Griffin has made the Clippers an even more formidable and dynamic team. The formula developed in the wake of his injury has allowed other players to find their own rhythm – including Jeff Green who scored 21 points against the Lakers. In the game against Washington, we saw that Jordan was able to switch off the opposition big men without fear of creating an obvious mismatch. Chris Paul was afforded more space than usual in both games as he was able to use the screens of both Jordan and Griffin – the latter being especially effective since Griffin will tend to draw extra defenders on the pick-and-pop.
Having such a high usage rate before the sidelining injuries and suspension, it is not unreasonable to assume that Griffin’s teammates have been given more of an opportunity to flourish together without him. The acquisition of Green from Memphis might not have ever happened either if the squad was not short of players at the 3 and 4 positions. Now Coach Doc Rivers has the opportunity to change the dynamic of the squad by moving Griffin to center and playing Green at the 4 position, which will no doubt become a crucial tactic against the Golden State Warriors in the second round of the play offs. Although Griffin does not look to be quite ready to carry the offense like he did earlier in the year, there are definitely signs that his return will be a decisive factor in their upcoming play off run. With 4 more games of the regular season to regain his mental and physical conditioning, Clippers’ fans will be eager to see how the team shapes up with Blake Griffin finally back in action.
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