New Oklahoma Basketball Performance Center to Bear Blake Griffin’s Name
By Chip Rouse
Blake Griffin has already made a name for himself in Oklahoma basketball history. Now his name will be permanently enshrined in the name of the new state-of-art basketball performance center, on which construction is slated to begin sometime in February.
Griffin, a native Oklahoman who played basketball for two seasons at OU and was the first Sooner player to win the Naismith Award, the Wooden Award and the Oscar Robertson Trophy as college basketball’s most outstanding player, last August committed a significant financial contribution toward the construction of a new basketball training center.
The new facility will be approximately 18,400 square feet and is expected to be one of the first of its kind among collegiate basketball strength and training centers. The new facility will help enhance the strength and training activities associated with both the OU men’s and women’s programs.
Construction is expected to take an estimated 12 months at a cost of $7 million. The new Blake Griffin Performance Center will include such features as basketball training courts, free weights, spaces for plyometric and cardiovascular training, cardio and strength testing, locker rooms, an exam and recovery area and a multipurpose area.
“Being a Sooner is more than just what you do in competition,” Griffin said in an article published on the Oklahoma athletic website. “I am thankful to have had the opportunity to play OU basketball, which has a legacy of people that have made it great.
“I am humbled that OU has chosen to name this facility after me, and I am really excited to see this high-performance training center come to life,” the former OU star said.
Griffin is in his seventh season with the Los Angeles Clippers of the NBA, where he is averaging close to 22 points and 10 rebounds for his career. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year in 2011.
Coach Lon Kruger, who was not at Oklahoma when Griffin and his brother, Tyler, played, called the new performance center an incredible resource for the Sooner basketball program.
It is a nice tribute to Griffin to have his name associated with the new basketball strength and training facility and appropriate recognition for a star player who wore one of the five retired jerseys that hang proudly in the rafters above Lloyd Noble Center