Goodfellas
06-26-2009, 07:36 AM
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Blake Griffin is definitely still learning as he takes his initial steps from college to the NBA.
And that includes what to wear.
Griffin took the stage at New York's Madison Square Garden on Thursday night as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, having been selected by the Los Angeles Clippers (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/teams/clippers).
But the player with all eyes on him had accented his black suit and tie with a purple shirt. That color is closely associated with the NBA champion Lakers, who rule the city and the arena they share with the Clippers, whose color scheme is red, white and blue.
"It was accidental, man," Griffin said on a conference call. "I didn't even think about it until right before the draft. Someone said, `The next time you wear purple it's going to be a $5,000 fine,' so I'll be sure not to make that mistake again."
Across the country, Griffin's fashion faux pas hardly mattered to Clippers officials gathered at the team's practice facility. They heartily applauded the franchise's only pick in this year's draft.
"We feel like Blake definitely is a sure thing," general manager and coach Mike Dunleavy (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/players/3601) said.
Griffin was the consensus college player of the year after leading the nation with 14.4 rebounds per game while averaging 22.7 points for Oklahoma. The Clippers said they would take the 6-foot-10, 251-pound forward with the top pick just hours after they won the draft lottery last month.
"I felt pretty solid, but I kept saying in the back of my mind, `Don't get too comfortable because something could happen,"' Griffin said about the possibility of a last-minute change of heart by the Clippers. "I tried to stay ready."
And that includes what to wear.
Griffin took the stage at New York's Madison Square Garden on Thursday night as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, having been selected by the Los Angeles Clippers (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/teams/clippers).
But the player with all eyes on him had accented his black suit and tie with a purple shirt. That color is closely associated with the NBA champion Lakers, who rule the city and the arena they share with the Clippers, whose color scheme is red, white and blue.
"It was accidental, man," Griffin said on a conference call. "I didn't even think about it until right before the draft. Someone said, `The next time you wear purple it's going to be a $5,000 fine,' so I'll be sure not to make that mistake again."
Across the country, Griffin's fashion faux pas hardly mattered to Clippers officials gathered at the team's practice facility. They heartily applauded the franchise's only pick in this year's draft.
"We feel like Blake definitely is a sure thing," general manager and coach Mike Dunleavy (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/players/3601) said.
Griffin was the consensus college player of the year after leading the nation with 14.4 rebounds per game while averaging 22.7 points for Oklahoma. The Clippers said they would take the 6-foot-10, 251-pound forward with the top pick just hours after they won the draft lottery last month.
"I felt pretty solid, but I kept saying in the back of my mind, `Don't get too comfortable because something could happen,"' Griffin said about the possibility of a last-minute change of heart by the Clippers. "I tried to stay ready."