Above All Else
Blake and Taylor Griffin aren't your everyday college basketball stars
By Nick Dunn -- March 16, 2009
Three weeks ago, in the first minute of a game at Texas Tech, Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin went up for a half-court alley-oop, but before he could catch the ball he was incidentally undercut by an opponent and landed hard on his backside. As Oklahoma fans gasped in fear that their favorite player might be seriously hurt, Griffin hopped right to his feet, shook off the blow and ran back to the other end of the court.
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Blake Griffin - #23 |
College: University of Oklahoma
Year: Sophomore
Height/Weight: 6-10/251
Position: Forward
Hometown: Oklahoma City
Trivia: Griffin is 13th in the nation with 22.1 points per game and second with 14.2 rebounds. He has an astounding 26 double-doubles so far this season. |
Later, in the second half, with a loose ball bouncing toward the sideline, Griffin dove headlong over the scorers’ table in an effort to save the Sooners’ possession. He landed in the first row of seats, but once again jumped back on the court and kept playing.
All this for a guy in his first game back from a concussion.
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It’d be easy to think that Griffin – the presumptive favorite to sweep the National Player of the Year awards – could get caught up in the hype surrounding his amazing sophomore season. He’s all but a lock to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft, so in a matter of months he could be making millions of dollars. It wouldn’t be surprising if a player as talented as Griffin got a bit transfixed by his own persona. But this isn’t your everyday college basketball superstar.
While Griffin is an impressive player every time he steps on the court (he’s averaging a ridiculous 22.1 points and 14.2 rebounds per game), he’s not too prideful to be a hard worker as well. It’s been that way for him since he began playing the game as a kid.
But part of what makes him tick, what makes him dive to the floor when others merely stand and watch, is his experiences off the court. Griffin credits his upbringing and his faith in Christ as the reason he’s such a hard worker. That’s also the reason he’s able to maintain his composure when opponents frequently use physical – sometimes dirty – play to try to get in his head.
“Just having wisdom or understanding of why people are doing that to me helps a lot, knowing that it’s going to happen and being prepared for it,” he said. “That’s one of the things I ask God for, to help me stay calm and not overreact and play the game the way it’s supposed to be played.”
Griffin thanks his father, Tommy, who coached him for four years in high school at Oklahoma Christian School and taught him the importance of hard work. Tommy and his wife, Gail, gave Blake and his brother, Taylor – a senior forward for the Sooners – two strong Christian role models to constantly look up to and emulate.
Blake and Taylor were home schooled until high school by their mom, a woman Taylor calls “a huge prayer warrior.” Tommy frequently spoke at FCA events around the state and, following suit, his two sons both served as FCA leaders during their time in high school.
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Taylor Griffin - #32 |
College: University of Oklahoma
Year: Senior
Height/Weight: 6-7/238
Position: Forward
Hometown: Oklahoma City
Trivia: Griffin is averaging 9.6 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 54 percent from the field for the No. 6 Sooners. |
The lessons the Griffin boys learned from their parents as kids have served them well since they arrived in Norman, Okla.
“It’s made such a difference,” Taylor said matter-of-factly about his Christian upbringing.
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When watching Blake and Taylor on the court together, slinging passes over their heads to the other cutting toward the basket, it’s like they always know where the other is on the court. They have a certain chemistry that perhaps only brothers can have.
But that wasn’t always so.
In their younger years, Blake and Taylor went through the typical big brother-little brother spats, especially when it came to competing. But as they’ve grown older and matured, they’ve developed a much deeper relationship. They’re now roommates at OU in what could very well be their last season playing competitive basketball together.
“We get along great now,” Taylor said. “We never really get into it about anything. The closest we get into something is on the court, and that’s just because of the heat of the moment, the passion of playing and all that. Our relationship has definitely matured.
“I think it first started maturing when I left for college. Once you’re not around each other every day, you have to make an effort to try to talk to each other and find out what’s going on in each other’s lives. I think we had more meaningful discussions at that point in our lives.”
As the Griffin brothers prepare to lead Oklahoma, a 2-seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, to a possible Final Four berth, they both know they have the strong foundation to help them get there. And when tuning in to watch them play, just know that they’re likely to be the hardest workers on the court.
“(We) don’t hold anything back,” Blake said. “That’s just kind of the way we were brought up – to not leave anything behind and to always do what was right.”
Photos courtesy of Ty Russell/OU Media Relations.
