An All-American at the University of Oklahoma, Griffin was named the 2009 National College Player of the Year.  His success with the Sooners landed him the First Overall Pick in the 2009 Draft, joining the Los Angeles Clippers. However, in what was then typical Clipper fashion, he missed the entirety of the 2009-10 season due to an injured kneecap.  This setback was overcome, leading to one of the best rookie seasons of all time, as Griffin averaged 22.5 Points and 12.1 Rebounds per Game, ultimately winning the Rookie of the Year award unanimously.  Griffin was also an All-Star for the first of five straight years.

Named to the All-NBA Second Team in both 2011-12 and 2012-13, Griffin now had Chris Paul as his Point Guard, and LOB City was formed.  The Clippers were now contenders and made the playoffs every year (except his first) that Griffin was there.  The Power Forward had his best year in Basketball in 2012-14, when he averaged 24.1 Points per Game and was third in MVP voting.  Griffin was a Third Team All-NBA Selection the following season and was eighth in MVP voting.

As electric as the Griffin and Paul combination was, they never got past the second round.  Paul was traded to the Houston Rockets in the 2017 off-season, and Griffin was traded during the year to Detroit.  In that hybrid Clippers/Pistons year, Griffin had his last good season, earning Third-Team All-NBA honors and his sixth and final All-Star selection. Injuries mounted on Griffin, and gone were the jaw-dropping dunks and overpowering athleticism.  He finished his career with Brooklyn and Boston, his last season being the 2022-23.

Griffin’s injuries may have derailed his career, but his early impact could be enough to gain a Hall of Fame induction.

Ralph Neely was drafted by the Houston Oilers of the American Football League and the Baltimore Colts of the NFL, and he had secretly agreed to play for the Oilers (it was kept a secret so that he could play for the University of Oklahoma in the Gator Bowl). 

It might be hard being named Keith Jackson when there was already a very famous sports commentator with the same name who became the voice of the sport.  The Tight End with the same name still managed to carve out his own identity.

As much as football changes, there are some statistics that will always remain critical to the game.  One such stat is the Interception, which is one of the biggest game-changers regardless of era.  In the ’60s, Bobby Boyd was one of the masters of the pick.

Mr. Phoenix Sun.  The team leader in several categories Alvan Adams came from Oklahoma as fourth overall pick in 1975 and made an instant impact.  He led the Suns to the NBA Finals in his rookie year and they almost pulled off an improbable upset of the Celtics. 

The grunge movement would not have been the same if Pearl Jam would have been able to call themselves what they wanted to; it would have been better.  Mookie Blaylock has such a nice ring to it for a Rock band don’t you think?  In regards to the man, Blaylock was quite the player.  One of the great shooting point guards ever, Mookie is top 50 in several NBA all time statistics.  He never really dominated the game but his consistency, ability to shoot and his great defense set him apart from most of the point guards of the 90’s.

Wayman Tisdale is one of the best college players ever and a very solid power forward who had a great low post game in the pros.  His career stats are not huge with just over fifteen points and six rebounds a game and his chances of getting in were hurt when they added the College Basketball Hall of Fame as a bailout to players who will not get in to the regular Hall.  He was the first and only three time All-American in his first three years of college and if he would have not left school early may have challenged Pete Maravich’s career scoring record.  He was a captain and a vital cog of the 1984 Gold Medal winning Olympic Team as the main low post option on offense.