Mumbai: “Los Angeles (LA) Clippers? A good outfit. I think you are mistaking it with Los Angeles Lakers,” – this was the common saying among the Americans till the clip held on to a band of youngsters who turned the tide in past few seasons. Blake Griffin is one of them, who said: “When I first joined Clippers, the rivalry was one-sided.”
But today, the 25-year-old is proud that despite having a history behind, Lakers’ era has been shaken, if not fully, by a team which is rebuilding.
“The Lakers will always be the Lakers, they have championships, titles, honours behind. We are not trying to take any of that away, we are just trying to make a name for ourselves,” he added.
Griffin, born in Oklahoma, grew up playing basketball with his brother, Taylor – a common story in the American households. He was coached by his father. “My father has been the biggest basketball influence, playing for him and having him around, having him push me harder than any other coach was a huge blessing,” said Griffin.
Whenever he gets time off the gym, he is also seen in commercials. How does he balance? “I normally do that when I think I have trained enough and have some time left over. My first preference is the sport. But I am lucky to work with really fun people,” he added.
Talking about the rebirth of LA Clippers, Griffin believes the atmosphere changed after Steve Ballmer took over as the owner. “It’s a different atmosphere, and I think everybody can see that. From top to bottom, I just think it’s a different vibe. He kind of gave the franchise a bit of hope and a little fresh taste of everything. It’s great to have an owner who’s so involved and so enthusiastic about winning. Not just winning, but treating people the right way, and making sure that everybody’s taken care of.
“I haven’t seen him, to this day, run out of energy. He’s got that same level of energy that I think everybody else sees, and it felt so fun to be on the court and to hear him. You know, when DeAndre gets a dunk or a big play happens, it’s cool to see your owner there every game screaming just as loud as every other fan,” said Griffin.
While many consider Griffin as the best ‘power forward’ in NBA presently, he refuses to rank opponents. “You know that isn’t my position. I’m not here to rank players, rank divisions, rank any of that. I’ll leave that to everybody else. My job is to go out and play basketball and that’s about it,” added Griffin, who is also a part of the Jordan brand.
