Blake Griffin Review

Griffin was born on March 16, 1989 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to Gail and Tommy Griffin. His father was a former basketball center and track standout at NAIA Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Griffin and his older brother, Taylor Griffin, were home-schooled by their mother from first grade until Taylor was in the tenth grade and Blake was in eighth.He grew up playing basketball games in his driveway with his older brother and was a fan of the Chicago Bulls.Growing up, he was good friends with Sam Bradford of the St. Louis Rams and played on the same Athletes First AAU basketball team along with Xavier Henry of the Memphis Grizzlies.Griffin’s parents owned a trophy company that Bradford’s father would use and Bradford’s father owned a gym where Griffin and his brother Taylor played basketball. Apart from basketball, he also played first baseman in baseball, soccer, and football as a wide receiver, safety and a tight end.
Griffin and his brother Taylor attended Oklahoma Christian School for high school where they played under their father who was the head coach. They played together during the 2003-04 and 2004-05 high school seasons, winning two state high school basketball championships together. In his freshmen year, the Oklahoma Christian Saints posted a perfect 29–0 season and won the Class 3A boys state championship game held at the State Fair Arena against Riverside.In his sophomore year, the Saints repeated as Class 3A state champions and finished the season with a 24–2 record,while averaging 13.6 points per game in what was his final high school season with his brother.He was named to the Little All-City All-State team and his brother was named The Oklahoman Player of the Year. After the season, his brother went off to college to play for the Oklahoma Sooners. During the summer of 2005, Griffin played against Kevin Durant and Ty Lawson while playing for the Athletes First AAU team.
As a junior, he averaged 21.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 4.9 assists, leading the Saints through the playoffs and earning a berth in the Class 2A championship game, beating Washington High School for a third straight state championship and was named the state tournament MVP.The team finished 27–1 and Griffin was named The Oklahoman Player of the Year and to the Tulsa World Boys All-State First Team. He gained national attention as a high school junior and caught the attention of the new head coach for the Oklahoma Sooners, Jeff Capel, who first heard of Griffin through his brother Taylor.[3] During the spring of 2006, Capel saw Griffin play for the first time and was impressed with his combination of size, strength and athleticism. Capel knew Griffin was the player he needed to rebuild his tenure with the Oklahoma men's basketball program.After being recruited by his brother, Griffin committed to Oklahoma after his junior season, who was also considering Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and Texas.

During his senior year, he averaged 26.8 points, 15.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.9 blocks per game while leading the team to a 26–3 record.In a game against Oklahoma City Southeast, Griffin had his best game of the season with 41 points, 28 rebounds, and 10 assists. On March 10, 2007, he played his final high school game in the state title game against Pawnee High School. He registered 22 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks, as the Saints defeated Pawnee 81-50, winning their fourth straight state title. He was named the Class 2A state tournament MVP for the second consecutive year after averaging 26.6 points per game in the tournament, winning its three games by an average of 30.3 points. During his four-year run, the Oklahoma Christian Saints posted a 106–6 overall record. He was named the Player of the Year by both the Tulsa World and The Oklahoman and named a Oklahoma Boys All-State First Team, EA Sports Second Team and a Parade Third Team All-American.He was ranked as the nation's #13 high school senior by HoopScoop, #20 by scout.com and #23 by rivals.com, and as the country's third-best power forward by HoopScoop, sixth by rivals.com and the seventh by scout.com. Additionally, he was the Gatorade Oklahoma Player of the Year and was selected to the McDonald's All-American and Jordan Brand All-America teams.At the McDonald's All-American game in Louisville, Kentucky he won the Powerade Jam Fest slam dunk contest.