After what was widely considered the best offseason in Los Angeles Clippers history, all eyes were on the Clippers to live up to their new found expectations. The NBA lockout and its impact on the season forced the team to start playing regular season games right out of the gate and it showed.

The Clippers had poor spacing and lacked cohesion and familiarity on the court, leading to plenty of missed defensive assignments and a pair of blowout losses to the San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls.

Their record stood at one win and two losses and the other side of the media spotlight showed itself; the negative backlash.

Sure it was only three games, but it was a crucial moment for the Clippers. They had all seen and heard the talk of a new culture in Clipper Nation, of veterans and all-stars now around to make sure the team was ready for adversity. It was time to back up all the talk with some action.

Luckily for the team and its fans, we had Chris Paul on our side.

He took charge and put his fingerprints all over a big win over an undefeated Portland TrailBlazers team, all the way down to making a huge defensive play and hitting the eventual game-winner in the final minutes.

The Clippers and Paul carried that momentum into tonight’s game against the Houston Rockets, with Paul opening the game aggressively – to the tune of 11 points and 6 assists in the first quarter.

That great start created a 15-point lead the Clippers would never relinquish in a blowout win and gave Paul and his fellow starters plenty of time to relax and get some rest. Blake Griffin was his usual spectacular self, putting up 22 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in only 32 minutes of action. Paul finished with 20 points and 10 assists in 29 minutes and Caron Butler and Chauncey Billups each put up double digit scoring as well.

DeAndre Jordan finished with 7 points and 8 rebounds in 28 minutes, but was a major factor in the deciding first quarter, where he pulled down almost all of his rebounds. The big scoring cushion gave the backups more than enough time to make an impression, with Mo Williams continuing his early season push for Sixth Man of the year with 7 points and 7 assists in 22 minutes and Randy Foye chipping in 16 points in only 19 minutes.

The Clippers are still a big work in progress, but the recent signing of backup big man Solomon Jones and extra practice time should be great for them, along with the debut of Reggie Evans. They’re now on a two-game winning streak and have an excellent chance to extend it to three with the Milwaukee Bucks coming into town on Saturday.

The win against the Rockets was their third sellout of the season (in 3 total home games) and the fans surely went home excited about the team and its future.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” is regularly published during the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

December 15, 2011 was one of the greatest days in Los Angeles Clippers history.

Before people jump down my throat for making that statement or show their petty bitterness with insecure jokes (I’m talking to you Lakers fans), there’s really no other way to describe it.

I know they didn’t win a championship, a conference title or heck, even one single game as currently constructed, but the acquisition of Chris Paul represents a monumental step forward for the franchise.

In Paul they now have a superstar in his prime who chose to come to the Clippers. Sure he was ready to join the Lakers less than 10 days ago, but who cares about that now, he’s a member of Clipper Nation.

Willingly.

Let that sink in for a moment. The Clippers are widely known as one of the worst franchises in major sports history. They’ve always been labeled losers, something that happens when you only make the postseason four times in 30 plus years, and have seemingly suffered at the hands of a cruel fate and an infamous owner.

The only stars they ever had either came through the draft (where the player has little say in the matter) or they were short term rentals who had no desire to be here. It was like the NBA’s version of detention, aka you’re banished to the Clippers.

That’s over and done with.

Thanks to the emergence of Blake Griffin, great draft choices by Neil Olshey and his staff and quality free agency moves, the Clippers are now on the fast track to changing their image.

There’s no bigger example of that reality than trading for Chris Paul. Sure the team had to give up some of its most coveted assets in Eric Gordon and their unprotected 2012 first round draft pick, as well as longtime Clipper center Chris Kaman. Those guys will be most definitely be missed, but it was a price that had to be paid if they ever really wanted to change their destiny.

The franchise has had great moments before, including getting Elton Brand to play his best years as a pro in red, white and blue. His teams made the playoffs and played deep into the postseason, coming just one bad defensive play short of the Western Conference Finals. But we all know how that ended, and the window was ultimately smaller than Kobe’s sense of humility.

With Paul and Griffin on the court together, alongside the youth of DeAndre Jordan and the veteran savvy of guys like Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler, these Clippers are primed to make immediate moves.

But even focusing on that sells the move short. A big chunk of what makes December 15, 2011 so special for the citizens of Clipper Nation is the symbolism involved.

A superstar in his prime finally chose to come to the Clippers, to not only fight to overcome the team’s cursed image, but to chase championships and build a brand new legacy. That’s not me putting words in Paul’s mouth either, take a look.

Fortunately for the Clippers, Paul doesn’t care about their sordid history. He sees only a bright future filled with lob passes to Blake Griffin, a renewed rivalry with the Los Angeles Lakers, playoff appearances and – if they’re fortunate enough – a championship.

“That’s what’s going to make this even more fun,” Paul said. “Anybody remember what the Hornets’ record was before I got there? It was 18-64. I’m used to being an underdog. It’s what competition is all about.”

That mentality has to permeate across nearly an entire franchise for it to really work, and Paul’s introductory press conference said it all.

You had Paul, the engaging young star ready to shine in Hollywood’s light and Olshey, the fresh-faced young executive oozing confidence and a genuine belief that the organization was finally moving in the right direction.

He had every reason to; they had pulled off what was seemingly impossible.

Sure it was just one day and there are a ton of uncontrollable variables that will ultimately decide the trade’s true value, but none of that mattered. Because on that one day, the memories of previous failures, freak injuries, heartbreaking losses and every other Clipper negative were gone.

At long last, the Clippers looked like a well-run organization capable of not only dreaming big, but believing in themselves enough to make those dreams a reality.

Need proof?

Just ask Chris Paul.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” is regularly published during the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Last night was the final game of the season for my Los Angeles Clippers and as a thank you to all the loyal members of Clipper Nation, it was also fan appreciation night. It gave us all one last chance this season to see the awesomeness of Blake Griffin’s game, and since the absolute best way is in person, I had to be there.

So I got together with some friends to go see the game, equipped with a brand new Blake jersey (courtesy of my brother), some great seats right by the visiting tunnel and huge expectations for a great night.

Luckily for us all, the Clippers didn’t disappoint in a 110-103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. The night was full of giveaways and prizes that ranged from Clippers t-shirts, hats, posters, cards and more to HD TVs, concert tickets and even a Kia Optima (the car Blake jumped over). All Clippers merchandise was 40 percent off and there was even a game-show style wheel you could spin from the Chumash Casino that guaranteed you a prize.

I was gunning for the shirt and wouldn’t have minded the hotel/spa combo, but ended up with a hat. A bit anti-climactic, but free is always fun.

Of the three games I went to this season, this one had the best ambiance by far, with fans buzzing and excited to see the team one last time. I’m sure the free stuff had a little to do with it too, but there were a lot of people outside the Staples Center at 5:30 pm, even though tip-off wasn’t until 7:30 that night.

The doors opened at around 6:15 and the Staples employees were very friendly in the lower levels, letting fans linger around the tunnels for autographs as the players did their pre-game routines. I got a chance to see a few retired NBA players like Howard Eisley and Damon Stoudamire, who are on the coaching staffs for the Clippers and Grizzlies, respectively, as well as current players like Marc Gasol and Leon Powe.

We were all nice to the Grizzlies players then, but once the game started things would change, especially for Powe, who ended up getting into it with Blake more than once, ultimately leading to his ejection and walk of shame down the same tunnel, this time to a shower of boos and taunts.

It didn’t seem to do anything other than motivate Blake, who erupted for his second career triple-double with 31 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He hit 13 of his 21 shots and 5 of 7 free throws and had another highlight-filled night.

For Blake, it was only fitting that a rookie season (and NBA career) that started with an alley-oop dunk ended with a triple-double and several new Clippers team records along the way. He finished the season with 1845 points (tenth overall in the NBA this year), 989 rebounds (third best), 312 assists and 66 doubles-doubles, also third highest in the league.

He averaged 22.5 points on 50.6 percent shooting to go along with 12.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists. He improved upon his free throw shooting as the season progressed, bringing it up from 61 percent before the all-star break to 69 percent after it. That gives Clipper fans even more things to look forward to, as an increase in his free three shooting percentage will allow him and the team even more scoring opportunities.

Along with the continued rise of center DeAndre Jordan, Eric Gordon and several other young players, as well as the time off for veterans like Chris Kaman to heal and be ready for a healthy year next season, this campaign was truly better than the 32-50 record makes it seem.

With the possibility of a lockout looming the NBA after this season, there’s no telling when we’ll be able to see games again. That made it even more special for all Clipper fans who were able to enjoy Blake and the Clippers this year. Thanks to everyone who read this diary this season and a special shout out to all the members of Clipper Nation!

Until next time.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Say what you want about the Los Angeles Clippers but they play hard and try to win. With rookie Blake Griffin leading the way, they’ve actually been able to play the role of spoiler for a few teams headed for the playoffs.

They entered tonight’s rematch against the Oklahoma City Thunder on a two-game winning streak that included a win over the Thunder just last week and almost handed them another, but ultimately fell short in a 112-108 loss.

It was hard to accept not only because they lost, but because of how close they came to scoring another upset, especially when the loss came because of unforced errors and missed free throws. They made only 18-26 at the line as a team, with Chris Kaman missing a huge pair in the fourth and then Griffin hitting only 1 of 2 near the end.

It wasn’t all bad though, as Griffin wowed his hometown crowd in Oklahoma with 35 points and 11 rebounds on his way to his 60th double-double of the season. That accomplishment puts him in exclusive company, with only Shaquille O’Neal collecting more than 60 as a rookie in the NBA’s history. As usual, he created more than one highlight, a few of which you can check out below.

With no chance for the playoffs, games like this are a way for the team to galvanize their bonds and build upon the positive for next season and the Clippers have plenty to look forward to. They’re 31-35 since starting the season 1-13, a record even more respectable when you consider all the time dealt with injuries to major pieces like Kaman and Baron Davis, and then the eventual mid-season trades that shook up the roster.

They still have three chances left to end the season on a winning note and of course they have the great luxury of waiting to see what Griffin can improve upon next season. He already holds the LA Clippers records for single-season double-doubles (60), total rebounds in one season (949) and the franchise mark for points by a rookie with 1,743 so far.

His 949 rebounds put him in the top five for a rookie since 1984, behind legendary names like David Robinson, Tim Duncan and Hakeem Olajuwan. He’s 10th in the entire league in points scored, third in rebounds, tied for third in rebounds per game (12.2) and one of only three guys with at least 60 double-doubles, joining Dwight Howard and Kevin Love.

He’s basically a freaking beast and as I’ve said many times before, the trio of him, Eric Gordon and DeAndre Jordan are a great young nucleus to build around. With veterans like Kaman and Mo Williams around to steady things and some decent cap space, there’s always that big chance we’ll get even better next go around.

Until then, let’s hope they get these last three wins!

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

As the season winds down for a Los Angeles Clippers team that knows it has no chance to make the playoffs, it’s an important test of their resolve and will to win. With only 29 wins and plenty of frustrating games in the season and last several weeks, it would be much easier for them to roll over and start thinking ahead to next season, so it’s great to see the team show so much effort.

Tonight’s 106-100 loss to the Dallas Mavericks (who are competing for the 2nd seed in the West) was a strong example of why so many Clipper fans are excited about this team.

Despite the odds being against them and with seemingly nothing to play for, they gave a spirited effort and actually lead much of the game. Rookie Blake Griffin spearheaded the effort once again, putting up another amazing game with 25 points, 17 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals and DeAndre Jordan and Chris Kaman combined to contribute 21 points and 16 rebounds at the center spot.

Eric Gordon had an off night, making only 4 of 18 shots on his way to 15 points. He was regularly unhappy with the lack of foul calls on his drives to the basket throughout the game, and the frustration boiled over in the 4th quarter, where Griffin and Mo Williams each got hit with technical fouls, including an ejection for Williams.

The controversy put the Clippers further in a hole, but also gave them some extra motivation and they made a big push to take the lead, with Griffin making a pair of baskets on some nifty spin moves, but they ultimately fell short.

Turnovers and missed three-point shots were the main culprits in the loss, with turnovers being a major problem all season for LA. A lot of that has to do with their young players and it’s hopefully an issue that will be dealt with better next season.

Up next for the Clippers are the Phoenix Suns on Friday, where they’ll be looking to get their 30th win of the season.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Just one day after the Los Angeles Lakers played a triple-overtime game against the Phoenix Suns at the Staples Center, the Los Angeles Clippers decided to do some of the same in a 127-119 double-overtime win over the Washington Wizards. As noted by ESPN’s Chris Palmer, that means there were 5 overtimes, 8 quarters and 522 points in 24 hours at Staples.

It was about as perfect a summation of what it’s like to be a Clippers fan as one game can get, with the team building up a big lead, then blowing it, then getting back into it, only to nearly lose it with terrible turnovers and bad shots. The team basically brutally messed with our emotions for a few hours, you know, the norm. If there was every any doubt as to the troubled basketball lives we Clippers fans live through, this game should show how resilient we truly are.

When it was all done and the dust settled, each team combined to score 246 points (on 195 shot attempts) in 3 hours and 8 minutes of game time. Rookie All-Star Blake Griffin recorded his first career triple-double with a spectacular line of 33 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists, making 14 of his 19 shot attempts. He was everywhere on the court and ended a double-double less streak of 7 straight games to tie Elton Brand‘s franchise record of 55 in one season.

As usual, Blake’s numbers included some more highlight-reel dunks, which you can watch below.

Chris Kaman, starting in place of DeAndre Jordan, put up 28 points and 12 rebounds, followed by a great performance from starting point guard Mo Williams, who handed out 10 assists of his own and put up 17 points, including some big shots late in the game.

He didn’t hit the biggest shot though, that honor was left to Eric Gordon, who played a major role in nearly losing the game, before stepping up and nailing a key 3-pointer with less than 2 seconds left in the clock to send the Clippers into the second overtime. He finished with 32 points.

As much as I know fans get scared every time Kaman gets the ball and starts to make a move, there were a couple of times in the fourth quarter and overtime where Gordon made a pair of costly turnovers that nearly lost the game, before also getting blocked. You could tell it bothered Gordon, so it was great to see him come through with the clutch shot on the next possession after the block.

It was a much needed win for the Clips, who didn’t want to have the go down as the team who ended the Cleveland Cavaliers 26-game losing streak and gave the lowly Wizards their second road win of the year in the same season. When you consider that the Wizards only road win was against those same Cavs, it would have made things even worse, especially because this Clippers team is so much better than previous years.

Sure they’re sporting a 28-44 record, but they’ve had to deal with several key injuries and have played extremely well against the league’s best teams. I know it’s a recurring and big “if” scenario with the Clippers, but the team can really make a push next season if they stay healthy and keep their core together.

Every single one of these types of wins pushes them further down the right path, which is all we can ask for right now as they get ready for the final 10 games of their season.

Next up are the Lakers on Friday and you never know, it might go into 4 overtimes.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

I had the pleasure of attending the Los Angeles Clippers most recent home game, a 104-94 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. It was a special game for several reasons, the first being the 22nd birthday of star Clippers rookie Blake Griffin. It was also another homecoming game for former Clippers All-Star Elton Brand, who many consider to be the greatest power forward in the team’s LA history.

He obviously left amid some controversy and every time he comes back he’s always showered with boos, with this time being no different. It’s an exercise in conflicting emotions for me, since I loved Elton as a player since he first joined the team after two great years with the Chicago Bulls, where he won rookie of the year and was a steady double-double machine, much like the team’s current star power forward.

He was the backbone of the franchise for all his years here and was a few bad coaching moves away from taking the Clippers to the Western Conference finals, hardly an easy task. Sure I was pissed back in 2008 when he left, seemingly at the last minute and for no defensible reason, but time has taught us that players are smart to try and escape Donald Sterling‘s tangled web.

Sterling’s latest shameful news came out this week, when it was revealed that the team refused to pay for cancer treatment for former assistant and interim head coach Kim Hughes, even though he was a longtime employee when he got the cancer. Instead, former Clippers like Brand, Corey Maggette, Marko Jaric and current Clipper center Chris Kaman chipped in approximately $70,000 to help the coach. All that makes it impossible for me to hate the guy, but I was clearly in a minority at the game.

To give you an idea of how much he’s hated, there was a young kid (about 9 to 11 years old) who repeatedly shouted out “traitor!” throughout the game at Elton. None of it seemed to affect him much, as he had a vintage night, scoring 19 points, collecting 12 rebounds and blocking 5 shots to help lead the Sixers to the win. Much like his Clipper days, he scored on an array of jumpers, offensive rebounds and putbacks. He also did a solid job of defending Blake, who looks like the season’s long grind is finally catching up with him.

He came into the game needing only one more double-double to tie Brand’s franchise record of 55 in a season, but came up short for the fifth consecutive game, scoring 14 points to go with 8 rebounds. Brand made it clear after the game that he enjoyed preventing his own record from being broken, even if for just one more game.

“I was not aware of that, but I’m glad I stopped him,” Brand said with a huge grin Wednesday night. “He’s so athletic. He gets to the rim with ease and he can finish over anybody, so we just tried to keep him out of that paint. I’m sure he’ll get one the next game and tie it, then break it — but not on my watch.”

The night was definitely an eventful one for Blake, who was given his fourth straight rookie of the month award before the game (see pics below) and almost got into his first NBA fight during the game when he was fouled hard by Sixers center Tony Battie. He immediately rose in anger from the fall and appeared ready to react, bringing the entire Staples Center to its feet.

All the players were quickly separated though, and things got back under control, with Battie receiving a flagrant foul. As I mentioned above, Blake seems exhausted. He’s been dealing with more double and triple teams in Eric Gordon’s absence and it’s affected his game. He shot only 3-12 on the night and fouled out for only the third time in his young career. There was another funny moment though, when some Sixers fans began to sing him “Happy Birthday” while he was at the line in the fourth quarter, which lead to several Clippers fans mistaking it as a good thing and joining in.

All in all, it was a fun experience, including some more acrobatic plays from Blake, who did manage to get another alley-oop dunk in (see video). I took some pics, which you can check out below.

Next up for the Clippers is a homecoming game for Baron Davis, who will come to LA with the Cleveland Cavaliers in his first game against the Clips since being traded last month. It’ll be interesting to see how he’s received by the crowd, especially now that the last piece of that temporary dream of Brand and Baron is officially gone forever.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Despite still not having leading scorer Eric Gordon healthy, things have been going well for the Los Angeles Clippers since their big trades. They went into Boston today as underdog winners of three straight and left with a nice 108-103 upset victory and their first four-game winning streak of the season.

It’s the latest in a series of major wins over the best in the NBA, following victories over the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and now the Celtics.

The most impressive part of the game was that the Clippers won despite an off night for their rookie star Blake Griffin, who only scored 12 points and collected 7 rebounds, well below his average. The Clippers wasted no time tonight though, jumping out to a big lead early and were ahead 60-42 at halftime.

The team has dealt with big collapses in the second half before and the lead turned out to be just enough to survive a strong late-game push from the Celtics, who cut it to 104-100 at one point. The Celtics then fouled Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, who shoots 43 percent from the free throw line on the season, hoping to get closer.

The strategy failed when Jordan calmly sank both free throws and extended the lead back to six. It was a great night for Jordan, who scored 21 points and pulled down 9 rebounds, including a nice dunk over Nenad Krstic.

Mo Williams, acquired in the trade for Baron Davis, put up 28 points to lead all scorers and hit several key three-pointers in the fourth quarter to preserve the win.

The Clippers are now 25-40 and have a relatively easy schedule for the next few games with matchups against the New Jersey Nets, Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers mixed in against the Memphis Grizzlies and Philadelphia 76ers.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

After what felt like a tortured eternity, the Los Angeles Clippers were able to welcome leading scorer Eric Gordon back to action and the results were immediate, with Gordon scoring 24 points in a 106-103 win over the Houston Rockets.

It was a desperately needed win for the Clippers, who had come into the game on a five-game losing streak. The fact that the Rockets were on a five-game winning streak made it even more impressive, especially since they had to struggle through some tense moments and were able to maintain their lead and properly close out the game.

Blake Griffin continues to put up his usual numbers, contributing 20 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists while battling foul trouble. He’s shown his tremendous character and maturity through losing games, and even more through the loss of a close friend to cancer. I can’t say it enough, this guy is a keeper all the way around and as Clipper fans we’re lucky to have him on our side.

As shocked as most of us in Clipper Nation were to see Baron Davis traded on deadline day last week, we can hang our hopes in the fact that it freed up enough money to re-sign Gordon and DeAndre Jordan, who had 16 rebounds tonight and is a key part of the team’s future.

Doing both those things would go a long way to keeping Blake happy, which should be the biggest item on team owner Donald Sterling‘s to do list, instead of yet another embarrassing moment like deciding to celebrate Black History Month in March (it’s in February) by giving away tickets to “underprivileged” (apparently a synonym for black) children.

Aside from that shameful news, everything else looked great tonight. Chris Kaman had one of his best outings since returning from his injury, scoring 21 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in 23 minutes. Most importantly, he scored 10 of his points in the fourth when the Clippers were in dire need of them with Griffin saddled on the bench with fouls.

Mo Williams and Jamario Moon had their first games as Clippers at the Staples Center and were both solid. Williams scored 17 points to go along with 11 assists and hit some crucial free throws to seal the win. Moon didn’t play much but made a few nice drives to the basket and gives the Clippers an alternative at the small forward spot if rookie Al-Farouq Aminu continues to play poorly.

Next up for the Clippers will be the Denver Nuggets, who come to Staples on Saturday and have been quietly surging since trading Carmelo Anthony. With all this positive energy flowing in the Clipper Nation, I’ll end this week’s diary with some fun behind the scenes videos from Blake’s first All-Star weekend.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Before I get into what I really want to discuss about the Los Angeles Clippers, which is their great representation at the 2011 NBA All-Star game in LA, I have to mention that the team has lost its first two games since the break ended.

The first one was a 111-88 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, which they followed up with another loss, this time 98-87 to the New Orleans Hornets.

Neither game was very good for the Clips, who were missing Baron Davis in tonight’s loss to the Hornets. They were plagued by an inexcusable 21 turnovers and struggled offensively, as Blake Griffin was double and triple-teamed throughout the game and his teammates couldn’t do much to help him.

The schedule won’t get any easier, with games against the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics coming up. All I can say is that I hope Baron and Eric Gordon come back as soon as possible.

Now that we have that out the way, I want to talk about the good stuff that took place this past weekend for the Clippers. Griffin is by far the runaway candidate for Rookie of the Year and he has reinvigorated the team’s image from a national joke to must-see TV. As a nod to that cultural change, I’ve switched up the official “Diary of an LA Clippers Fan” artwork to reflect the team’s new look and attitude.

By averaging 23 points, 13 rebounds and almost 4 assists a game, he’s only the third player ever to put up those numbers as a rookie, joining the legendary Elgin Baylor and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He is second in the league with 137 dunks at the break, each of which you watch by clicking here and his excellent play has earned him a massive spotlight.

Thanks to that fame, he became the only player in NBA history to take part in all three days of the All-Star festivities. He played in the Rookie/Sophomore All-Star game, won the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest and took part in the most prestigious honor when he played in the official All-Star game, scoring 8 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in only 14 minutes. I have a bunch of his highlights to share below, starting off with his incredible alley-oop from the Rookie game.

It was an extremely dunk to complete, especially off a bounce pass like that but the two rookies connected on it and Blake gave everyone a glimpse of what was to come. He was widely considered the favorite to win the Dunk Contest and his participation and winning-dunks made it the most-watched dunk contest in the event’s 26-year history.

We have footage from each of his dunks, thanks to the NBA and the BlakeGriffinChannel on YouTube.

With the win he became the second Clipper to earn the award, following former Clipper Brent Barry, who won in 1996. He showed off his seemingly-endless athleticism with his first three dunks and stepped up to the national spotlight and put on a true show with the final dunk, winning the crowd over with the idea and execution.

As a rookie coming off a season-ending injury the year before, it would have been natural and acceptable for Griffin to fail to live up to the hype, but true to his ferocity and endless energy, he showed he could handle it all.

One of the things lost among all the highlights and fame though is the fact that he’s stayed humble about all the success flying at him, as noted in this column from ESPNLA’s Arash Markazi.

The Clippers have a less-than-stellar history when it comes to keeping their stars and constant losing are obviously not high on athlete wish-lists, so the professionalism and maturity that we’ve seen from Blake so far in his career could be a welcome sign for all the citizens of Clipper Nation. With such a talented young core assembled and the national Clippers re-branding that’s currently taking place, it’s the perfect time for them to truly change the course of their history.

If this season has taught us anything, who better than Blake Griffin to get it done?

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. He’s a longtime Clippers fan and his “Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published every Wednesday of the NBA season. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com