Matt Kemp
Kemp with the Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 27
Center fielder
Born: (1984-09-23) September 23, 1984 (age 27) Midwest City, Oklahoma
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 28, 2006 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Career statistics (through May 21, 2012)
Batting average	.296
Hits	882
Home runs	140
Runs batted in	485
Stolen bases	146
Teams
Los Angeles Dodgers (2006–present)
Career highlights and awards
NL All-Star (2011) NL RBI Champion (2011) NL Home Run Champion (2011) 2x Gold Glove Award (2009, 2011) 2x Silver Slugger Award (2009, 2011) Hank Aaron Award (2011) Baseball America Player of the Year (2011) 30–30 club (2011)

Matthew Ryan "Matt" Kemp (born September 23, 1984, in Midwest City, Oklahoma)^[1] is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers.^[2]

Kemp was drafted by the Dodgers in the 6th round of the 2003 draft and made his major league debut in 2006. In 2011, Kemp led the National League in runs scored (115), total bases (353), OPS+ (171), WAR (10.0), home runs (39), and runs batted in (115). Additionally, he became the first player to finish in the top two in both home runs and steals since Hank Aaron in 1963.

High school[link]

Kemp attended Midwest City High School, where he was a standout in basketball and baseball.^[2] He was teammates with Shelden Williams on the varsity basketball team that won the state title their junior year.

Kemp, along with Williams and three other teammates, was accused of raping a 19-year-old woman at the time of a high school all-star basketball tournament on January 20, 2002, at the Columbus, Ohio Hyatt hotel.^[3][4][5] The players were suspended from the team during the investigation.^[6] The woman did not press charges, and the district attorney opted to not pursue the matter due to a lack of evidence.^[7]

Kemp was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 6th round of the 2003 draft, and signed with the team on June 5, 2003.

Minor leagues[link]

He started his professional career for the Gulf Coast Dodgers in 2003 and followed that up with stints with the Columbus Catfish in 2004 and the Vero Beach Dodgers in 2004–05. He was selected to the Florida State League All-Star team in 2005, and set Vero Beach franchise records for home runs (27) and slugging percentage (.569).

Major leagues[link]

Los Angeles Dodgers (2006–present)[link]

2006[link]

He began 2006 with the AA Jacksonville Suns, where he hit .327 with 7 homers, 34 RBIs and 11 steals, prompting a promotion to the major league squad. His promotion was spurred by an effort to provide regular rest for center fielder Kenny Lofton and oft injured right field All-Star J.D. Drew.

Kemp made his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 5, 2006, against the Pittsburgh Pirates.^[8] He hit his first Major League homer on June 1 in his second Dodger Stadium at-bat off the Philadelphia Phillies' Gavin Floyd. He homered in three straight games from June 1–3 against the Phillies and homered twice on June 11 off Colorado Rockies starter Aaron Cook. He also became the first Dodger and 5th major league player to hit four homers in his first 10 days with the team.^[2]

In mid-July, he was re-assigned to the AAA Las Vegas 51s but was recalled to the Dodgers on September 1.

2007[link]

Kemp at the plate in 2008

Kemp started the 2007 season on the major league roster but lost his place after suffering an injury while running into the outfield fence at Dodger Stadium. Upon his return from the injury, he was optioned back to Las Vegas and didn't return to the Dodgers until mid-June. Once recalled, he enjoyed an outstanding sophomore campaign with the bat batting .342, clubbing 10 home runs, and driving in 42 runs while splitting time with Andre Ethier. However, he made the fourth most outs in the base paths in the National League in 2007.

2008[link]

Going into the season, Kemp was expected to battle for one of the corner outfield positions, though his spot in right field was essentially guaranteed. After driving in 11 runs and stealing 6 bases. he was named "NL Player of the Week" for the week of April 28 – May 4.^[9]

After a knee injury to Andruw Jones, Kemp became the Dodgers' regular center fielder. He finished the season with a .297 average, 18 homers and 76 RBI. He was also second on the team in stolen bases with 35.^[10] In addition, he set a Dodgers record with 153 strikeouts in a season.

2009[link]

Kemp had his first career walk-off hit on June 16 against the Oakland A's.^[11] On September 24, he became the first player in Dodger history to hit at least .295, with 25 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 30 steals in one season. He finished the year with .297, 26 home runs, 101 RBI, and 34 steals (3rd in the NL).

He hit his first career post-season home run on October 7 in his first at-bat of the NLDS against the St. Louis Cardinals. After the season, Kemp was selected as a recipient of both the Gold Glove Award and the Silver Slugger Award. He also tied for second with three others in the majors with 3 grand slams.

2010[link]

Kemp returns to the dugout after hitting a home run on May 22, 2010

Kemp began the 2010 season in excellent fashion, hitting 7 home runs in the month of April, including 4 in four days from April 13–16. However, he slumped badly in the second half of the season and finished with a .249 batting average, 28 home runs, 89 RBIs, and 19 steals while playing in all 162 games for the first time in his career. He also broke his own single-season Dodger record for strikeouts, with 170.

Kemp was the subject of some criticism in 2010 from General Manager Ned Colletti who called him out publicly early in the season for poor baserunning.^[12] Kemp had several embarrassing gaffes on the base paths during the season and was caught stealing 15 times.^[13]

He hit home runs in five straight games to end the season, the first major league player to ever accomplish that feat and the first Dodger since Shawn Green in 2001 to hit homers in five consecutive games.

2011[link]

After his much publicized problems on the base paths the previous season, Kemp arrived at spring training early to work with new Dodger coach Davey Lopes on his base running. Kemp announced his intention to steal 40 bases this season and Lopes hoped they would be high percentage steals.^[14] At the end of the season, Kemp had the 40 steals and was only caught 11 times, a significant improvement in percentage from the previous year, and his work with Lopes was credited for much of the improvement.^[15]

After being one of the league leaders in home runs, stolen bases, RBIs, and batting average during the first half of the season, Kemp was voted as a starter for the National League squad in the 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Arizona. He also accepted an invitation to participate in the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game.^[16]

The day before the All-Star Game, Giants' manager and 2011 NL All-Star Manager, Bruce Bochy, announced his decision to bat Kemp 3rd in the line up. Explaining his decision, Bochy said about Kemp, "He's a guy with speed, power, a guy that can beat you with a base hit or a long ball. He's what you call a complete player – tremendous defender, but more so in the 3-hole, he can do so many things for you. He's so dangerous."^[17] Kemp, with a single and a walk, became the first Dodger to reach base twice in an All-Star Game since Mike Piazza in 1996.

Kemp hit his 30th home run of the season on August 26, and in the process became the second Dodger player of all time to hit at least 30 homers and steal at least 30 bases in the same season (30–30 club). The only other one was Raúl Mondesí in 1997 and 1999. He picked up his 40th stolen base on September 17, becoming the 18th Major Leaguer and first Dodger in history to hit at least 30 homers and steal at least 40 bases. Kemp also scored his 100th run of the season, making him just the 10th L.A. Dodger to score 100 runs and have 100 RBIs in a season, and the first since Jeff Kent in 2005. He hit his 35th home run on September 21, making him the 14th Major Leaguer (and first since Alfonso Soriano in 2006) to hit at least 35 home runs and steal at least 35 bases in a season.

On September 20, the Dodgers announced Kemp was selected by his teammates as the recipient of the 2011 Roy Campanella Award, which is given annually to the Dodger player who best exemplifies the spirit and leadership of the late Roy Campanella.^[18] He also won the NL Player of the Week Award for the week of September 19–25, 2011 after he hit .423 (11 for 26) with 9 runs scored and 3 home runs during that week.^[19]

Kemp wound up hitting 39 home runs in 2011 with 126 RBIs, leading the league in both categories, the first Dodger to do so since Dolph Camilli in 1941. He also led the league in runs scored (115), total bases (353), OPS+ (171), and WAR (10.0). He finished second in slugging percentage (.586), OPS (.986), extra base hits (76), and stolen bases (40, tied), and third in batting average (.324) and outfield assists (11).^[20] Kemp also extended his games played streak to 364 games, as he played in every game of the season. He was the first player to finish in the top two in both home runs and steals since Hank Aaron in 1963.

Kemp was selected for a number of post-season awards, including the Baseball America Major League Player of the Year,^[21] the Hank Aaron Award for the top hitter in the National League (the first Dodger player to ever win the award)^[22] the Golden Glove Award and the Silver Slugger Award. On October 27, he was named to the 2011 Sporting News National League All-Star team.^[23] On November 22, he came in second to Ryan Braun in the voting for the National League Most Valuable Player Award.^[24]

After the season, Kemp signed a franchise record 8-year, $160 million contract extension.^[25]

2012[link]

Kemp started the 2012 season off by winning the National League Player of the Week award for the opening weekend. He hit two home runs and drove in eight RBI during the opening series against the San Diego Padres. He was also the first Dodger to record three consecutive multi-hit games to start the season since Adrian Beltre did it in 2000. This was the third time he had won the award, and second consecutive as he had won it the final week of 2011 as well. ^[26] On April 10, Kemp became the first LA Dodger to have an RBI in the first five games of the season since J. D. Drew in 2006 and, counting the end of the previous season, he had nine straight games with an RBI, tying Roy Campanella (1955) and Augie Galan (1944) for the Dodgers franchise record.^[27] Kemp also won the Player of the Week award for the second week of the season, which, combined with winning the award in the last week of 2011, makes him the first and only player to ever win three consecutive awards. He is also only the second player to win the award twice to begin the season, the other being Tony Armas in 1981. Kemp hit 12-22 with 4 HR and a 1.182 slugging percentage, leading the club to its best 10-game start since 1981.^[28] Kemp hit his 10th home run of the season on April 25, tying Gary Sheffield's club record for homers in April set in 2000.^[29] He broke Sheffield's record with a walk-off homer against the Washington Nationals on April 28.^[30] Kemp was also named National League player of the month for April.^[31] Kemp was placed on the disabled list on May 14 because of a hamstring injury, ending his streak of 399 consecutive games played, which was the longest in the majors at the time.^[32] After his DL stint, he promptly re-injured his hamstring two days later while running the bases and returned to the DL.^[33]

Nickname[link]

Kemp's nickname is "The Bison."^[34] During the second major league game of Kemp's career, on May 29, 2006, he stole second base in the fourth inning, after which Atlanta Braves television announcer Don Sutton said he looked "like a big buffalo running around the bases." The observation was appropriate due to Kemp's imposing size – the Dodgers' roster lists him at 6' 3" tall and 225 pounds – and surprisingly fast foot-speed. The word "buffalo" was modified to "bison," by the commenter D4P^[35] on Jon Weisman's popular Dodgers blog, Dodger Thoughts,^[36] as it is a more proper term for the North American mammal to which the moniker refers. It wasn't until the next day when the starting lineup did not include Kemp that baseball writer Eric Enders, also commenting in Dodger Thoughts added the capitalized article in front of the animal, completing the nickname, writing "So much for looking forward to watching The Bison tonight."^[37]

The nickname is also a play on Kemp's Oklahoma roots. A bison is the state of Oklahoma's official animal.

Personal life[link]

	Biography portal
	Baseball portal

Kemp resides in Los Angeles during the off season and is a Los Angeles Lakers fan. Kemp is also a San Francisco 49ers fan.^[38][39]

Kemp dated pop singer Rihanna from December 2009 to November 2010.^[40][41][42]

Kemp is actively involved in charities for children, even creating a community initiative called Kemp's Kids in 2008 and 2009 that hosted children from the Los Angeles area during several games at Dodger Stadium. Some of these children were from the Challenger Boys & Girls Club.^[43]

He is friends with Shelden Williams and Dexter Fowler.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Matt Kemp

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)

Jimmy Kimmel
Kimmel in May 2007
Birth name	James Christian Kimmel
Born	(1967-11-13) November 13, 1967 (age 44) Brooklyn, New York, USA
Medium	Radio, Television, Film, Stand up
Nationality	American
Years active	1989–present
Genres	Observational comedy, Black comedy, Satire, Deadpan
Subject(s)	American politics, Celebrities, Everyday life, Sex
Influences	David Letterman
Spouse	Gina Kimmel (1988–2002; divorced; 2 children)
Domestic partner(s)	Sarah Silverman (2002–2007; 2008–2009) Molly McNearney (2009–present)
Notable works and roles	Creator and Host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC) Creator and Co-Host of The Man Show co-host of Win Ben Stein's Money (Comedy Central) co-host of Crank Yankers
Emmy Awards
Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host: 1999 Win Ben Stein's Money

James Christian "Jimmy" Kimmel (born November 13, 1967) is an American comedian, actor, voice artist and television host. He is the host of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, a late-night talk show that airs on ABC. Prior to that, Kimmel was best known as the co-host of Comedy Central's The Man Show and Win Ben Stein's Money. Kimmel is also a television producer, having produced shows such as Crank Yankers, Sports Show with Norm Macdonald, and The Andy Milonakis Show.

Early life[link]

Kimmel was born in the Mill Basin neighborhood of the New York City borough of Brooklyn,^[1] the eldest of three children of Joann (née Iacono), a homemaker, and James Kimmel, an IBM executive.^[2][3][4] He is Roman Catholic and, as a child, served as an altar boy.^[5][6] Kimmel is of German and Irish descent on his father’s side and Italian descent on his mother’s side.^[7] His uncle, Frank Potenza, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! as a regular from 2003 until his death in 2011.^[8]

The family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, when he was nine years old.^[2] He graduated from Ed W. Clark High School and then attended University of Nevada, Las Vegas for one year before attending Arizona State University for two years without completing a degree.

Career[link]

Radio career[link]

Kimmel began working in the radio industry while in high school, hosting a Sunday night interview show on UNLV's college station KUNV. While attending Arizona State University, he became a popular caller to the KZZP-FM afternoon show hosted by radio personalities Mike Elliott and Kent Voss in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1989, Kimmel landed his first paying job alongside Voss as morning drive co-host of The Me and Him Show at KZOK-FM in Seattle, Washington. Ten months later, Kimmel and Voss were fired by KZOK (for reasons unknown) and were fired again a year later at WRBQ-FM in Tampa, Florida. Kimmel went from Tampa to host his own show at KCMJ in Palm Springs, California, where Kimmel convinced a young Carson Daly to drop out of college and become his intern. After a morning stint at KRQQ In Tucson, Arizona, Kimmel landed at KROQ-FM in Los Angeles. He spent five years as "Jimmy The Sports Guy" for the Kevin and Bean morning show. During this time he met and befriended a struggling comedian named Adam Carolla.^{[citation needed]}

Comedy Central[link]

Kimmel began his television career as the comedic counterpart to Ben Stein on the game show Win Ben Stein's Money, which began airing on Comedy Central in 1997. His quick wit and loutish everyman personality were counterpoints to Stein's monotone performing style and patrician demeanor. The combination earned the pair an Emmy award for Best Game Show Host.^{[citation needed]}

In 1999, during his time with Win Ben Stein's Money, Kimmel was also co-host with Adam Carolla and co-creator (with Daniel Kellison) of Comedy Central's The Man Show. Kimmel permanently left Win Ben Stein's Money in 2001, replaced by comedian Nancy Pimental, who was eventually replaced by Kimmel's cousin Sal Iacono. The Man Show's success allowed Kimmel, Carolla and Kellison to create and produce, under the banner Jackhole Industries, Crank Yankers for Comedy Central (on which Kimmel plays the characters "Elmer Higgins", "Terrence Catheter", "The Nudge", "Karl Malone" and himself), and later The Andy Milonakis Show for MTV2. Kimmel also produced and co-wrote the feature film Windy City Heat, which won the Comedia Award for Best Film at the Montreal Comedy Festival.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Jimmy Kimmel Live!

In January 2003, Kimmel permanently left The Man Show to host his own late-night talk show, Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC. Jimmy Kimmel Live was briefly also broadcast on Irish digital TV channel 3e.^[9] In the April 2007 issue of Stuffmagazine.com, Kimmel was named the "biggest badass on TV". Kimmel said it was an honor but clearly a mistake.

Since the show's second season, it has not actually been broadcast live. This is due to an incident during the 2004 NBA Finals in Detroit, when Kimmel appeared on ABC's halftime show to make an on-air plug for his show. He suggested that if the Detroit Pistons defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, "they're gonna burn the city of Detroit down ... and it's not worth it." Officials with Detroit's ABC affiliate, WXYZ-TV, immediately announced that night's show would not air on the station. Hours later, ABC officials pulled that night's show from the entire network. Kimmel later apologized.^[10] The incident led ABC officials to force Kimmel to tape his show an hour before it airs in most of the country to check for offending content.^[11]

Kimmel usually ends his show with, "My apologies to Matt Damon, we ran out of time." When Matt Damon did actually appear on the show to be interviewed, he walked in and sat down only to be told just a few seconds later by Kimmel, "Sorry, but once again we are completely out of time." Damon seemed to become angry.^{[citation needed]}

In February 2008 Kimmel showed a mock music video with a panoply of stars called, "I'm Fucking Ben Affleck",^[12] as "revenge" after his then-girlfriend Sarah Silverman and Matt Damon recorded a similar video, "I'm Fucking Matt Damon". Silverman's video originally aired on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and became an "instant YouTube sensation."^[13] Kimmel's "revenge" video featured himself, Ben Affleck, and a large lineup of stars, particularly in scenes spoofing the 1985 "We Are the World" video: Brad Pitt, Don Cheadle, Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Harrison Ford, Dominic Monaghan, Benji Madden and Joel Madden from Good Charlotte, Lance Bass, Macy Gray, Josh Groban, Huey Lewis, Perry Farrell, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Pete Wentz, Meat Loaf, Rebecca Romijn, Christina Applegate, Dom Joly, Mike Shinoda, Lauren Conrad, and Joan Jett, among others. After this Jimmy's sidekick, Guillermo, appeared in a spoof of The Bourne Ultimatum, which starred Damon. He was then chased down by Damon as Matt cursed about Kimmel being behind all this. Guillermo also stopped Damon on the red carpet one time and before he could finish the interview he said, "Sorry we are out of time." The most recent encounter was titled "The Handsome Men's Club" which featured Kimmel, along with the "Handsome Men", who were: Matthew McConaughey, Rob Lowe, Lenny Kravitz, Patrick Dempsey, Sting, Keith Urban, John Krasinski, Ethan Hawke, Josh Hartnett, Tony Romo, Ted Danson, Taye Diggs, Gilles Marini, and Ben Affleck, speaking about being handsome and all the jobs that come with it. At the end of the skit Kimmel has a door slammed in his face by none other than Matt Damon, stating that they had run out of time and then Damon continues with a sinister laugh. Jennifer Garner also makes a surprise appearance.

As a tradition, celebrities voted off Dancing with the Stars appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, causing Kimmel to describe himself as "the three-headed dog the stars must pass on their way to No-Dancing Hell".^[14] In the 2008 season of his show, Kimmel started another tradition of ceremonially burning the dancers' shoes after they were voted off DWTS.^{[citation needed]}

Other television work[link]

In Spring 1996, Kimmel appeared as "Jimmy the Fox Guy" in promos on the Fox network.

Kimmel's other television work included being the on-air football prognosticator for Fox NFL Sunday for four years. He has had numerous appearances on other talk shows including, but not limited to, Live with Regis and Kelly, The Howard Stern Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and The Late Show with David Letterman. Kimmel has appeared on The Late Show five times, most recently in 2010. Kimmel served as roastmaster for the New York Friars' Club Roast of Hugh Hefner and Comedy Central Roasts of Pamela Anderson. He has appeared on ABC's Dancing with the Stars, along with his parking lot security guard Guillermo.

In August 2006, ABC announced that Jimmy Kimmel would be the host of their new game show Set for Life.^[15] The show debuted on July 20, 2007. On April 6, 2007, Kimmel filled in for Larry King on Larry King Live. That particular show was about the paparazzi and Kimmel reproached Emily Gould, an editor from Gawker.com, about the web site's alleged stalking of celebrities. On July 8, 2007, Kimmel managed the National League in the 2007 Taco Bell All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game in San Francisco. He played in the game in 2004 and 2006 (Houston and Pittsburgh). On July 11, 2007, Kimmel along with basketball player LeBron James, hosted the 2007 ESPY Awards. The show aired on ESPN on July 15, 2007. Kimmel hosted the American Music Awards on ABC four times, in 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Kimmel guest hosted Live with Regis and Kelly during the week of October 22, 2007 – October 26, 2007, commuting every day between New York and Los Angeles. In the process, he broke the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest distance (22,406 miles (36,059 km)) travelled in one work week.^[16]

Kimmel has performed in several animated films, often voicing dogs. His voice appeared in Garfield and Road Trip, and he portrayed Death's Dog in the Family Guy episode "Mr. Saturday Knight"; Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane later presented Kimmel with a figurine of his character on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Kimmel also did voice work for Robot Chicken. Kimmel's cousin "Sal" (Sal Iacono) has accepted and won a wrestling match with WWE superstar Santino Marella. On January 14, 2010, in the midst of the 2010 Tonight Show host and time slot conflict, Kimmel was the special guest of Jay Leno on The Jay Leno Show's "10 at 10" segment. Kimmel derided Leno in front of a live studio audience for taking back the 11:35 pm time slot from Conan O'Brien, and repeatedly insulted Leno. He ended the segment with a plea that Leno "leave our shows alone," as Kimmel and O'Brien had "kids" while Leno only had "cars".^[17]

Kimmel also made a brief appearance in the TV commercial "There's A Soldier In All Of Us" promoting the 2010 video game Call of Duty: Black Ops, along with Kobe Bryant. He is seen taking cover from bullets, then firing an RPG-7 with the words PROUD N00b on it, with the aftershock from the weapon sending him tumbling backwards.

He has been asked to host the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards which will air on September 23, 2012, marking his first time hosting the event.^[18]

Kimmel hosted the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington, D.C. on April 28, 2012.

Personal life[link]

Kimmel and his then girlfriend, Gina, married in June 1988. They have two children, Katie (born 1991) and Kevin (born 1993). The marriage ended in separation in early 2002. Kimmel then dated comedian Sarah Silverman for five years, splitting with her in March 2009.^[19] He started dating current girlfriend, Molly McNearney, in October 2009. McNearney is also a co-head writer for Jimmy Kimmel Live.^[20]

Kimmel plays the bass clarinet. He got a chance to showcase his talent during a July 20, 2008, concert in Costa Mesa, California, featuring the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, when he took the stage and played bass clarinet on their hit song "The Impression That I Get."^[21]

Kimmel has spoken publicly of being a narcoleptic.^[22]

Kimmel co-founded the annual LA Feast of San Gennaro,^[23] which celebrates Italian culture through entertainment, music and cuisine. The festival also honors outstanding members of the Los Angeles community and raises funds to aid needy children and families in the city. He hosted Los Angeles' eighth annual feast of San Gennaro from September 28 to 30, 2009.^[24] Kimmel served as Master of Ceremonies for the National Italian American Foundation's 34th Anniversary Gala in Washington, D.C., on October 24, 2009.

Awards[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (October 2011)

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Blake Griffin

Griffin with the Clippers
No. 32 – Los Angeles Clippers
Power Forward
Personal information
Born	(1989-03-16) March 16, 1989 (age 23) Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Nationality	American
High school	Oklahoma Christian School (Edmond, Oklahoma)
Listed height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight	251 lb (114 kg)
Career information
College	Oklahoma
NBA Draft	2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Los Angeles Clippers
Pro career	2009–present
Career history
2009–present	Los Angeles Clippers
Career highlights and awards
NBA Rookie of the Year (2011) 2× NBA All-Star (2011, 2012) All-NBA Second Team (2012) NBA All-Rookie First Team (2011) NBA Slam Dunk Champion (2011) Adolph Rupp Trophy (2009) AP National Player of the Year (2009) John R. Wooden Men's Player of the Year Award (2009) NABC Player of the Year (2009) Naismith College Player of the Year (2009) Oscar Robertson Trophy (2009) Big 12 Player of the Year (2009)
Stats at NBA.com

Blake Austin Griffin (born March 16, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Griffin had a renowned high school career at Oklahoma Christian School, winning state titles each of his four years under his father, Tommy Griffin, who was the head coach. He played college basketball for the University of Oklahoma Sooners and was awarded numerous accolades in his second year including the Naismith College Player of the Year, Oscar Robertson Trophy and the John Wooden Award.^[1]

Griffin left college after two seasons to enter the 2009 NBA Draft where he was selected first overall by the Clippers. In his first season, he broke his left kneecap, which he injured during the final pre-season game, and underwent surgery missing the entire 2009–10 season. He made his NBA debut as a rookie the following season and was selected as an All-Star, won the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest and was named the NBA Rookie of the Year. In 2011, Sports Illustrated ranked him as one of the NBA's 15 Greatest Rookies of All Time.^[2]

Early years[link]

Childhood[link]

Blake Griffin was born on March 16, 1989, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Tommy and Gail Griffin.^[3] His father was a basketball center and track standout at NAIA Northwestern Oklahoma State University.^[4] 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.^[5][6][7][8] The Griffin brothers are bi-racial, their father being African-American and their mother White.^[9] Growing up, he was good friends with Sam Bradford, who currently plays for the St. Louis Rams and played on the same Athletes First AAU basketball team with Xavier Henry, now with the New Orleans Hornets.^[8][10] 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.^[11] Apart from basketball, he also played baseball as a first baseman and football as a wide receiver, safety and a tight end.^[11][12]

High school[link]

After years of competing against his brother, Taylor, Griffin enrolled at Oklahoma Christian School in 2003, after Taylor. 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.^[5] 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 Indian School, 55–50.^[13] In his sophomore year, the Saints repeated as Class 3A state champions, defeating Sequoyah-Tahlequah 51–34, where he scored 12 points to go along with 9 rebounds.^[14] The team finished the season with a 24–2 record,^[15] with Griffin averaging 13.6 points per game. He was later named to the Little All-City All-State team in what was his final high school season with his brother.^[16] After his sophomore year, his brother accepted a scholarship to play college basketball for the University of Oklahoma Sooners. During the summer of 2005, he was a member of the Athletes First AAU team, where he played against Kevin Durant and Ty Lawson's AAU team, the DC Blue Devils.^[17][18]

During his junior season, the Oklahoma Christian basketball team was moved down to Class 2A from the Class 3A.^[19] As he began his third season with the Saints, he was quickly developing into a strong and athletic player,^[20] as he led the Saints to a third straight state championship, scoring 22 points, 9 rebounds and 6 blocks, defeating Washington High School 57–40.^[21] He was named the state tournament MVP,^[22] and the Saints finished the season 27–1, with Griffin averaging 21.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 4.9 assists. For his efforts, he was named The Oklahoman Player of the Year and to the Tulsa World Boys All-State First Team.^[23] His play attracted the attention of the new basketball head coach for Oklahoma, Jeff Capel, who first heard of him through his brother Taylor.^[4] That spring, Capel saw him play for the first time and was impressed with his combination of size, strength and athleticism.^[4] Capel liked the fact that Griffin had not yet become a household name among recruiters and recruited him because he felt he was the player he needed to rebuild his tenure with the Oklahoma men's basketball program.^[4] He had been considering Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and Texas,^[4] but his brother eventually sold him on joining Oklahoma when he raved about the direction of the Sooners and the chance to play together again for his home state.^[24]

Griffin committed to Oklahoma before the start of his senior season^[24] and averaged 26.8 points, 15.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.9 blocks per game as a senior while leading the team to a 26–3 record.^[3] In a game against Oklahoma City Southeast, he finished with an eye-popping triple-double, 41 points, 28 rebounds, and 10 assists.^[25] The Saints advanced through the playoffs, defeating Crescent in the quarterfinals and Foyil in the semifinals to earned a berth in the Class 2A state championship.^[26] On March 10, 2007, he played his final high school game in the state title game against Pawnee High School.^[16] He registered 22 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks, as the Saints defeated Pawnee 81–50, winning their fourth straight state title.^[5] 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.^[3] During his four-year run, the Oklahoma Christian Saints posted a 106–6 overall record.^[27]

Griffin 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 All-American Second Team and a Parade Third Team All-American.^[25][28] He was ranked as the nation's #13 high school senior by HoopScoop, #20 by scout.com and #23 by rivals.com,^[29] and as the country's third-best power forward by HoopScoop, sixth by rivals.com and the seventh by scout.com.^[3] 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.^[30][31] At the McDonald's All-American game in Louisville, Kentucky he won the Powerade Jam Fest slam dunk contest.^[32]

College career[link]

Griffin while playing at Oklahoma

Griffin was one of the highest rated and most decorated recruits ever at Oklahoma.^[3] As a freshman at Oklahoma, he averaged 14.7 points and 9.1 rebounds in 28.4 minutes per game and led the Sooners to a 23–12 record.^[33] He ranked ninth in scoring, fourth in rebounding and third in field goal percentage in the Big 12 Conference.^[3] In a game against the Kansas Jayhawks, he suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his left knee five minutes into the Sooners game.^[34] Less than two months after injuring his left knee, he injured his right knee in a home victory against Texas A&M.^[35] The injury this time was torn cartilage, and he had arthroscopic surgery on March 2, 2008.^[35] He missed the following game, a victory over in-state rival Oklahoma State Cowboys,^[36] but was back on the court a week after the injury with 14 points and 8 rebounds in 28 minutes versus the Missouri Tigers, a win for the Sooners on their home floor.^[33] He was a first-team all-district pick by the USBWA and NABC, and was named to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team and to the first-team All-Big 12 selection by league coaches and Associated Press.^[3] He became the first Sooner to make the conference All-Rookie team since Wayman Tisdale in 1983 for the Big Eight Conference.^[37] He was expected to be a lottery pick in the 2008 NBA Draft but decided to return to college for a second season to give himself time to mature physically and make Oklahoma a contender for the NCAA championship.^[6]

In his sophomore season, the Sooners started out the season winning their first 12 games before falling to the Arkansas Razorbacks.^[38] In the third game of the season against the Davidson Wildcats, he scored 25 points and grabbed 21 rebounds,^[39] after which he scored 35 points and 21 rebounds against Gardner–Webb,^[40] becoming the first player in Big 12 history to record back-to-back games of at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.^[3] This earned him three consecutive Big 12 player of the week honor and finished the season with a record-tying six player of the week honors.^[3] In a home victory against the Texas Tech Red Raiders, he set career bests for both points and rebounds with 40 points and 23 rebounds,^[33] becoming the only player in Big 12 history and the third player in the history of the University of Oklahoma men's basketball program to score 40 points and get 20 rebounds in the same game, joining Wayman Tisdale (61 points and 22 rebounds in 1983) and Alvan Adams (43 points and 25 rebounds in 1975).^[41][42]

On February 21, he received a concussion in a loss to the Texas Longhorns, when he caught an inadvertent shot to the face from the open hand of Texas center Dexter Pittman.^[43] He sat out the second half during the Sooners loss with a bloody nose.^[43] It was the Sooners' first loss of their conference schedule for the season.^[44] After sitting out the next game, a loss to Kansas Jayhawks, he was cleared by the medical staff and returned a week later to get 20 points and 19 rebounds in a victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders.^[45] Oklahoma finished second in the conference with a 13–3 record but fell short in the first game of the Big 12 Tournament to the Oklahoma State Cowboys.^[46] In the "Big Dance", Oklahoma was seeded No. 2 in the South Region with a 27–5 record.^[47] In the second-round win over the Michigan Wolverines, he scored 33 points and grabbed 17 rebounds,^[48] just the second player in the 2000s decade with at least 30 points and 15 rebounds in the NCAA tournament.^[49] However, the Sooners lost to the North Carolina Tar Heels in the South Regional final.^[50]

Griffin averaged 22.7 points, 14.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game during the regular season and earned All-American First Team honors.^[51] He led the Big 12 in scoring and rebounds, and recorded at least 20 points and 15 rebounds 15 times, which is a Big 12 record.^[3] He also set school and Big 12 single-season records for most rebounds (504), rebounding average (14.4), and double-doubles (30), and his free throw attempts (324) were the most by a Sooner in a single-season.^[52][53] With 30 double-doubles during the season, he was one short of the NCAA record of 31 set by David Robinson in 1986–1987.^[54] His total of 504 rebounds were the most in a season by an NCAA Division I player since Indiana State's Larry Bird had 505 in 1978–79 and his rebounding average of 14.4 was the highest since Wake Forest's Tim Duncan averaged 14.7 in 1996–97.^[3][55]

For his sophomore year performance, Griffin swept all six of the national player of the year awards. He was a unanimous choice by voters in all nine geographical districts for the Oscar Robertson Trophy and was named Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year, receiving 66 of the 71 national media panel members' votes.^[56][57] Griffin was announced as the winner of the prestigious Naismith College Player of the Year on April 5 in Detroit.^[58] Three days after announcing that he would turn pro, he won the John Wooden Award as college basketball's top player.^[1] He became the first Oklahoma player in school history to win the Naismith Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy, Adolph Rupp Trophy, John Wooden Award and the Associated Press player of the year.^[1][57] He was also named Player of the Year by the Big 12, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News and FoxSports.com.^[11]

College statistics[link]

NBA career[link]

Los Angeles Clippers (2009–present)[link]

2009–10: Injured season[link]

On April 7, 2009, Griffin announced that he would give up his final two years of eligibility and declared for the NBA Draft after his sophomore year.^[59][60] A press conference announcing his decision was aired nationally on ESPNews. He was selected as the first overall pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2009 NBA Draft.^[61] Griffin played for the Clippers' Summer League Team and was named Summer League MVP. In their final preseason game, he injured his kneecap as he landed after a dunk.^[62] The day before the 2009–10 season started it was confirmed that Griffin had a stress fracture in his left knee, delaying his NBA debut for seven weeks.^[62] After resting the stress fracture for several weeks, tests revealed that his knee was not recovering properly.^[63] In January 2010, Griffin had surgery on his broken left kneecap, missing the entire 2009–10 season.^[63] In the off season Griffin spent a great deal of time working out with a San Francisco-based trainer.^[64]

2010–11: Rookie of the Year and Rookie All-Star[link]

Griffin in a game against the Washington Wizards on March 12, 2011

Since he missed the entire 2009–10 season, Griffin was still considered a rookie during the 2010–11 season.^[65] In his debut for the Clippers against the Portland Trail Blazers, Griffin scored 20 points and registered 14 rebounds.^[66] He set a franchise record for most consecutive double-doubles with 23 in a home game against the Golden State Warriors.^[67] His streak of consecutive double-doubles was the longest rookie double-double streak since 1968,^[2] which ended at 27 games on January 19 in a win against the Minnesota Timberwolves where he scored 29 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.^[68] On January 17, 2011 against the Indiana Pacers, Griffin scored a career-high and set a Clippers record for most points scored by a rookie with 47 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.^[69] He became the first rookie to have two 40+ games in his rookie season since Allen Iverson during the 1996–97 season.

Griffin was voted to the 2011 NBA All-Star Game by coaches as a reserve on the Western Conference squad, becoming the first rookie to play in the All-Star game since Yao Ming in 2003 and the first rookie voted to the game by coaches since Tim Duncan in 1998.^[70][71] He also participated in the 2011 Rookie Challenge and won the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest during the All-Star break.^[72][73] On March 23, 2011, in a double overtime win over the Washington Wizards, Griffin recorded his first career triple-double, 33 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists,^[74] and recorded his second triple-double with 31 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, in the final game of the season against the Memphis Grizzlies.^[75]

During the season, he captured all six of the Western Conference T-Mobile Rookie of the Month, the first time a rookie has swept an entire season of Rookie of the Month awards since Chris Paul during the 2005–06 season.^[76] He played in all 82 regular season games and became the first rookie to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds since Elton Brand did it in the 1999–00 season.^[77] He led all rookies in points, rebounds and double-doubles, earning him the Rookie of the Year award, and was the first unanimous winner for the award since David Robinson in 1990.^[78][79] He was also the only unanimous selection to the All-Rookie First Team.^[80] In October 2011 Griffin was rated the 10th best player in the NBA by ESPN and the collective TrueHoop Network.^[81]

2011–12 First playoff appearance[link]

Blake Griffin and Clippers players (Nick Young, Chris Paul, Randy Foye and Kenyon Martin) on the floor vs Kings on April 4, 2012.

Griffin was voted to play as a starter for the 2012 NBA All-Star Game, along with teammate Chris Paul. He was also selected to participate in the Rising Stars Challenge. Griffin was selected as the #1 pick for Team Shaq,^[82] which was a mix of rookies and sophomores. In the first round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs, Griffin helped the Clippers eliminate the Memphis Grizzles in a game 7.

Player profile[link]

Griffin hanging on the rim

Standing at 6 feet 10 inches (2.08 m), Griffin is a power forward. In his rookie year, he averaged 22.5 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, becoming just the 20th rookie in NBA history to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game in the shot clock era.^[83] He has established himself as a difficult player to defend, proving to be highly effective coming off the pick and roll, attacking the basket off the dribble, or in the post.^[84] His exceptional leaping and ability to establish position down low allowed him to finish in the top 5 in rebounding during his rookie season. Griffin's rookie season was highlighted by countless spectacular dunks; this prowess for dunking culminated in his winning the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest.

In addition to his athleticism, Griffin has proven himself to be a well rounded big man with above average skills in ball handling and passing.^[85] Rob Mahoney, in a January 2011 post in the New York Times basketball blog, singled out Griffin's playmaking abilities stating, "The overtly dominant aspects of Griffin’s play have made him one of the season’s greatest delights, but his game clearly stretches beyond the scoring and rebounding columns... his passing aptitude should serve as a reminder of the substance in his game. The dunks are great, but it’s his multiple-layered impact that has paved his early road to stardom."^[85] Griffin's weaknesses remain his jump shooting and free throw shooting, which stands at 59.3% following the conclusion of his second season.

NBA career statistics[link]

Regular season[link]

Playoffs[link]

Career highs[link]

Regular season[link]

Awards and honors[link]

NBA[link]

• NBA Rookie of the Year: 2011
• NBA All-Star: 2011, 2012
• All-NBA Second Team: 2012
• NBA Slam Dunk Champion: 2011
• NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2011
• Western Conference Rookie of the Month: November 2010,^[86] December 2010,^[87] January 2011,^[88] February 2011,^[89] March 2011,^[90] April 2011^[91]

College[link]

• 2009 Naismith College Player of the Year
• 2009 John Wooden Award
• 2009 Adolph Rupp Trophy^[92]
• 2009 Oscar Robertson Trophy^[93]
• 2009 AP All-American First Team^[94]
• 2009 Sports Illustrated Player of the Year^[95]
• 2009 AP National Player of the Year
• 2009 Sporting News Player of the Year^[96]
• Phillips 66 All-Big 12 Men's Basketball Awards^[97]
  • 2009 Big 12 Player of the Year^[98]
  • 2009 All-Big 12 First Team^[97]
  • 2008 All-Big 12 First Team
  • 2008 Big 12 All-Rookie Team

High school[link]

• Class 3A State Championship: 2004, 2005
• Class 2A State Championship: 2006, 2007^[3]
• Class 2A Tournament MVP: 2006, 2007^[3]
• The Oklahoman Player of the Year: 2006, 2007
• 2007 McDonald's All-American
• 2007 McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Champion
• 2007 Parade All-America Third Team^[28]
• 2007 EA Sports All-American Second Team^[99]
• 2007 Tulsa World Player of the Year
• 2007 Oklahoma Boys All-State First Team
• 2006 Tulsa World Boys All-State First Team
• 2005 Little All-City All-State Team

Off the court[link]

Griffin resides in Manhattan Beach, California.^[100]

Endorsements[link]

Griffin appeared on the cover of NCAA Basketball 10 video game by EA Sports, and in an advertising campaign for Subway restaurants.^[101] He has appeared in commercials for Kia automobiles and AT&T,^[102] and appeared in Sports Show with Norm Macdonald with teammate DeAndre Jordan.^[103] In April 2011, Panini America signed Griffin to an exclusive long-term deal that will feature his autographs and memorabilia in Panini products.^[104] Panini initially signed him to a one year deal, which expired in 2010.^[105] He has also signed with Vizio to pitch digital TVs and other products.^[106] In April 2011 he appeared in a trailer for the video game Rage.

Philanthropy[link]

Griffin started a fundraiser called Dunking for Dollars, in which he donates $100 to fight childhood obesity for every dunk he makes.^[107] The Kia sedan that Griffin jumped over to win the Slam Dunk Contest was donated for a charity auction on AutoTrader.com with proceeds benefiting Stand Up to Cancer.^[108] The auction started May 5, 2011 and ran through May 15. Stand Up to Cancer also has a fund-raising site called Team Blake, in honor of his close friend Wilson Holloway, who died after a three-year fight with Hodgkin's lymphoma.^[108]

See also[link]

• 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans
• List of first overall NBA draft picks
• List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Blake Griffin

• Official Site
• YouTube video of a dunk by Blake Griffin
• Career statistics and player information from NBA.com, or Basketball-Reference.com, or ESPN.com

• Scout.com Profile
• Rivals.com Profile
• NBADraft.net Profile
• DraftExpress Profile