by Timmy Duncan

Created on: May 21, 2010

Heading in to the 2009 NBA draft, it looked like pretty slim pickings. Beyond the clear number one pick, Blake Griffin, it didn’t look like this particular draft class had much to offer in the way of legitimate NBA talent. But sometimes appearances can be deceiving.

Blake Griffin was drafted with the first overall pick in the draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. The franchise has been the subject of fate’s cruel nature and bad karma for most of its existence and many NBA fans joked about how long it would be before Blake Griffin suffered a season ending knee injury. Turns out, that was no joke. Whether it was the curse of the Clippers or some other force, Blake Griffin was barely able to put any meaningful time together on the court as he was plagued by injuries during his first year in the NBA. Griffin clearly has the talent to have a nice career for himself in the NBA, but his first year was a bit of a bust.

Meanwhile, others who were not expected to be major contributors when drafted wound up coming up huge for their franchises. DeJuan Blair who the San Antonio Spurs nabbed late in the first round, was a lottery talent that had been passed over due to knee injuries. The Spurs decided that they were willing to take a risk on the kid - and boy, did it pay off.  Blair was able to contribute to the team immediately, grabbing rebounds and posting up players much larger than him with healthier knees. He was clearly the steal of the draft.

Tyreke Evans was considered a talented player, but both Hasheem Thabeet and James Harden were drafted ahead of him. Evans was dominant throughout the year and ended up being crowned the Rookie of the Year – an honor he may have been awarded regardless of whether or not Blake Griffin was eligible.

The dark horse in the draft was without question Brandon Jennings. Nobody saw that kid coming. Jennings elected to play overseas during the year after he graduated high school while he waited to become eligible for the NBA draft. The skills he acquired during that year may have served him very well. He fell to the 10th overall pick and was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks. Within weeks of his being drafted, he delivered a 55 point performance. Jennings was the catalyst for a stunning first round playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks during which the Bucks took Atlanta to seven games.

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