Blake Griffin Injury Is Scary

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Apparently the curse of the Clippers never ends. Rookie of the Year candidate Blake Griffin will miss at least six weeks with a broken kneecap, and sadly enough, I wasn’t even surprised. Sure, the guy is an absolute specimen who appears indestructible. But put him on the Clippers, and one day before the season opener, he ends up on the injured list. I cannot help but feel for Clipper fans and more importantly, for Griffin. I’ve been saying for weeks that this is the season the Clips put it all together, and get back to the playoffs. But now what? How will their young star recover?

We’ve seen young big men have injury issues before. Greg Oden still doesn’t look like the dominant force at Ohio State that made him the No. 1 pick in 2007. Amare Stoudemire seems to have recovered fully from a more serious injury. Andrew Bogut – another No. 1 pick – has never had the ceiling of a Griffin or Oden, but he too has struggled staying healthy with a gimpy back. Yao Ming is simply incapable of playing a full season, and some speculate he may not play again. Al Jefferson is coming off knee surgery and appears healthy, but who knows. This is not meant to scare Clippers fans or to say Griffin won’t be a great player. But knee injuries are always scary, especially for big men, who tax their bodies more. The pounding in the post that a center or power forward takes cannot be understated, and although I fully expect Griffin to come back strong, nothing is for certain.

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