As much as I love to admit it, Blake Griffin will be a perennial MVP candidate for the next decade or so.
It's not just this week's game I'm talking about, in which he exploded on Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom for 10 points in the fourth quarter, bringing his team from a seven-point deficit with just seven minutes remaining to a seven-point win; or the 47 points he just dropped on the Indiana Pacers on 19-for-24 shooting, making 9-of-11 free throws, grabbing 14 rebounds and dishing 3 assists.
If you've watched him this season, seeing how his consistent and aggressive play has brought the Clippers from a disastrous 1-13 start and 5-21 overall to winning 10 of their past 14 games, you get a good idea of what this young man brings to the table.
With quality wins over teams like the New Orleans Hornets and the San Antonio Spurs—both teams leading the league in wins at the time at the time they faced the Clippers—the Oklahoma City Thunder, Chicago Bulls, and Miami Heat—who came into the game having won their last 21 of 22 contests and got knocked off the top spot in the Eastern Conference—Blake Griffin has been shocking the league lately with MVP-caliber play.
We have a good month before the trade deadline to make this work. I think a fair trade would be Pau Gasol for Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. The Lakers would absolutely take a straight Gasol-for-Griffin deal, but their salaries don't match which is why the Clippers need to throw in Jordan, who is Griffin's closest friend on the team, and someone the Lakers would want if they care to keep Griffin happy.
Even with Jordan in the deal, the Clippers would still need to make up over $11 million in salary given that Gasol is earning close to $18 million...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
