Fantasy Alert: Blake Griffin Eyeing His Season Debut in Two Weeks

The Los Angeles Clippers, who have been waiting all season to introduce rookie Blake Griffin to the NBA, may have to wait just two more weeks.

Griffin is working his way back from a stress fracture in his left kneecap, but is eyeing a January 20 return, which would likely have him seeing limited minutes off the bench against the Chicago Bulls.

Fantasy Perspective

Griffin will need some time to break into the flow of the NBA game, and on top of that, he may not have a solid role off the bench. His status in the rotation is clearly in question, and it will be interesting to see how much he is impacted by the physical nature of the NBA after being away from any top level basketball since the summer.

Griffin did have a fine showing in the NBA Summer League, however, and should find himself among the top rookie performers once he gets going.

The Clippers are doing a find job on the inside with an impressive Chris Kaman and a still serviceable Marcus Camby, but there's no doubt Griffin's youth and athleticism will be a welcomed addition to the front line.

From a fantasy perspective, Griffin is a high risk/moderate reward. We're not sure what we'll get out of him from an offensive standpoint just yet, and we're fairly certain he'll have at least mild defensive issues when he first starts out.

However, the reward would be over 15 points per game in a solid role, along with good rebound and block numbers. The mere possibility of Griffin making a splash in the fantasy realm in the next month has to have him on any struggling team's radar.

Verdict

Pick him up if your big's aren't getting it done. Griffin may not go off immediately, but he's definitely worth stashing on your bench.

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