Blake Griffin Is Not the 10th-Best Player in NBA, ESPN NBA Rank Dropped the Ball

Blake Griffin came in at No. 10 on ESPN's NBA Rank, and that certainly seems extraordinarily high for a player who has spent just a single season in the league.

While Griffin's inaugural campaign with the Los Angeles Clippers was indeed exciting, was it really enough to merit his inclusion as a top-10 player in a league that's filled with amazing talent?

Let's delve into the case.

Griffin's rim-rattling highlight dunks were virtually nightly appearances on SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays segment, and there's no doubt that he injected youth, energy and optimism into a franchise that has been a consistent bottom-dweller since before his arrival.

It's also true that Griffin averaged better than 20 points and 10 rebounds as a rookie, a feat that doesn't get spoken about enough considering just how impressive it is.

But let's not push the throttle all the way forward on the hype machine with Griffin just yet.

It was a standout campaign, but it was just one season.

This is the same player who some had debated as a potential bust after he missed his first season with the Clippers because of a knee injury that sidelined him for the entire year, and now he's been catapulted into the top-tier talent in the entire league?

I don't think so.

This is not an attempt to deride or diminish anything that Griffin accomplished last season.

He is a great contributor, a phenomenal player and, assuming he stays healthy, Griffin has the chance to become a top 10 (or better) player in this league for a very long time.

He's just not there yet.

Some of Griffin's numbers from last season are unquestionably strong: 22.5 points per game, 12.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists and a 50.6 field-goal percentage from the floor.

Here are some ugly numbers from Griffin that some like to glance over: 64.2 percent from the free-throw line, 0.8 steals and just 0.6 blocks per game.

Yuck.

While I understand that even the greatest players currently in the game aren't perfect, Griffin still has a lot of work to be done and must continue his pattern of prolific production if he's going to be considered among the elite players in the NBA.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Rose (in no particular order) are all guys I'd put well ahead of Griffin, and that already knocks the Clippers big man out of the top 10.

Here are some other names to consider ahead of Griffin: Pau Gasol, Paul Pierce, Amar'e Stoudemire, Steve Nash, Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo and Kevin Love could all have cases made on their behalf that they belong ahead of Griffin on a list that's ranked by "current quality."

The best part about the NBA Rank project is that it got basketball fans discussing the values of different players around the league.

There has been some serious debate as to the position of some players whose value may have been slightly miscalculated, there's no doubt that Griffin's ranking has certainly stirred the pot.