The Los Angeles Clippers have lofty goals for the 2011-12 season, so they won’t likely have much P.T. for their rookies.  21-year old power forward Trey Thompkins has played in 4 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 7.3 minutes, 3.3 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  21-year old shooting guard Travis Leslie has only played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 4.5 minutes per game.  Leslie has scored 2 points and he has 1 rebound so far this year for the Clippers.

22-year old power forward sat out his first season due to injury, so he was still considered a rookie in 2010-11.  He went out and made up for lost time which resulted in him winning the 2010-11 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.  Griffin played in 82 games (all starts) for the Clippers last season and he averaged 38.0 minutes, 22.5 points, 12.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game.  He also shot 50.6% from the floor last year which is pretty darn impressive for a rookie.  A lot of the reason for his high FG% was the fact that he is one of the best dunkers in the entire NBA, due to the power he attacks the basket with.  He also won the Slam Dunk Championship at the All-Star Game.  Griffin’s only weakness is his free-throw shooting (64.2%) which he might be able to improve with practice.  I could see Griffin someday adding an MVP or three in his trophy case in the future to go along with his ROY Award.

All you have to do is take a look at the performance of the Clippers’ 4 rookies to know that things are going to start to change around the Staples Center when the Lakers aren’t in it.  22-year old power forward Blake Griffin turned in a monster performance for the Clippers last year.  He played in 82 games (all starts) for the Clippers last year and he averaged 38.0 minutes, 22.5 points, 12.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game.  He shot 50.6% from the floor but only 64.2% from the free throw line.  The only weakness I can see in his game is his free throw shooting, but that’s nitpicking.  He looks like he is going to be the next Karl Malone…..or better!  21-year old point guard Eric Bledsoe is now stuck behind Mo Williams, but he makes the most of his time on the basketball court.  Bledsoe played in 81 games (25 starts) for the Clippers last year and he averaged 22.7 minutes, 6.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  He will bide his time coming off the bench until a starting job opens up.  20-year old small forward Al-Farouq Aminu had some good nights and some bad ones last year.  He played in 81 games (14 starts) for the Clippers last year and he averaged 17.9 minutes, 5.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  He only sot 39.4% from the floor and that will need to improve if he wants to win a starting job next year.  24-year old shooting guard Willie Warren played in 19 games (0 starts) for the Clippers last year and he averaged 7.1 minutes, 1.9 points, 0.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  Warren only shot 37.1% from the floor but that could be because of his inconsistent P.T.

21-year old power forward Blake Griffin is going to win the Rookie of the Year Award in the NBA this season.  He has played in 63 games (all starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 37.9 minutes, 22.7 points, 12.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.  Griffin harkens the days of Dominique Wilkins with his dunking ability.  He could be a NBA MVP in the near future as long as the Clippers eventually get going in the right direction.  21-year old point guard Eric Bledsoe will likely develop into a good starter down the road for the Clippers.  Bledsoe has played in 63 games (25 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 24.4 minutes, 6.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  20-year old small forward Al-Farouq Aminu also has starter type ability down the road for the Clippers.  Aminu has played in 62 games (14 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 18.1 minutes, 6.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  21-year old shooting guard keeps going back and forth between L.A. and the D-League.  Warren has played in 19 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 7.1 minutes, 1.9 points, 0.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

The Clippers have sent 21-year old rookie guard Willie Warren to the Bakersfield Jam of the D-League.  Warren has played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 7.3 minutes, 2.1 points, 0.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.  He only has played in 3 games in December, January and February in which he has averaged 2.0 minutes, 0.7 points and 0.3 assists per game.  It doesn’t make any sense for the Clippers to let Warren rust on the bench, at least he’ll get some P.T. in the D-League to try to keep sharp just in case the Clippers need him at some point the rest of the year.

21-year old power forward Blake Griffin has been making up for lost time so far this year.  He has played in 37 games (all starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 37.3 minutes, 21.8 points. 12.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.  He has been the most dominating inside player that the Clippers have ever had and they hope he can stay healthy and keep playing strong basketball.  20-year old small forward Al-Farouq Aminu is also playing solid basketball so far this year for the Clippers.  Aminu has played in 36 games (14 starts) so far this year for the Clippers and he is averaging 17.9 minutes, 6.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  He is also shooting an outstanding 41.3% from the three point line so far this year!  21-year old point guard Eric Bledsoe is Baron Davis’ caddy.  Bledsoe has played in 37 games (22 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 25.5 minutes, 7.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  21-year old shooting guard Willie Warren has played in 12 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 8.8 minutes, 2.4 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  The Clippers have a bright future due to this quartet.

The four rookies on the Clippers are playing pretty solid basketball so far this year.  21-year old power forward Blake Griffin is the main man on the Clippers so far this year.  He has played in 29 games (all starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 36.5 minutes, 20.8 points, 12.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game.  Griffin is shooting 51.6% from the floor with a lot of his shots being impressive dunks displayed a lot on SportsCenter.  He does need to improve his free throw shooting though as he is only hitting 57% from the charity stripe so far this year.  21-year old point guard Eric Bledsoe is pushing veteran Baron Davis.  Bledsoe has played in 29 games (22 starts) so far this year for the Clippers and he is averaging 27.4 minutes, 7.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game.  He also has a bright future.  20-year  old small forward Al-Farouq Aminu has also had his moments so far this year.  Aminu has played in 28 games (14 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 17.3 minutes, 6.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  Aminu is only shooting 42.9% from the floor so far this year but a simply amazing 48.3% from three point range.  21-year old shooting guard Willie Warren hasn’t gotten to play much this season.  Warren has played in 12 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 8.8 minutes, 2.4 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  The Clippers had two great drafts in a row to build a foundation for the future.

21-year old power forward  Blake Griffin is a beacon in the darkness for the Los Angeles Clippers.  Griffin has played in 23 games (all starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 35.9 minutes, 20.0 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.  He is shooting 51% from the floor but only 58% from the free throw line.  Part of the reason for that is because Griffin’s favorite shot appears to be a nasty dunk in a defensive players’ face.  That being said, no one has really been able to stop him so far this year.

I know the Clippers have been terrible so far this year but you can’t blame that on the rookies who have been outstanding. 21-year old power forward Blake Griffin has played in 12 games (all starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 35.1 minutes, 16.9 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game as he is looking like a young Karl Malone just like the scouts said he would. 21-year old point guard Eric Bledsoe is starting due to Baron Davis’ injury and he’s doing a solid job. Bledsoe has played in 12 games (9 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 31.1 minutes, 9.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game. 20-year old small forward Al-Farouq Aminu also has a huge upside and he has also been inserting into the starting lineup. Aminu has played in 12 games (3 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 16.3 minutes, 7.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Aminu is also shooting 13 of 24 (54.2%) from three point range which is outstanding. 21-year old shooting guard Willie Warren has played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 6.8 minutes, 1.3 points, 0.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. The Clippers have a bright future and these four guys are going to be a big part of it.

21-year old rookie Blake Griffin missed all of last season due to a broken kneecap. So he is trying to make up for lost time and the early returns are quite good. Griffin has started 4 games for the Clippers so far this year and he is averaging 34.8 minutes, 16.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game. The player that Griffin has been compared most to is Hall of Famer Karl Malone and the Clippers would be ecstatic if he has that kind of career because the result in that would be a lot of wins.