Summer Scrimmages in Playa Vista
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 2:11 am
Humphries works on Blake imitationOne day in mid-August, while Kris Humphries was having lunch in Malibu, Calif., with his business manager, Josh Ketroser, a fan walked up to one of the newest members of the Celtics and mistook him for Clippers star power forward Blake Griffin.
Humphries relayed the story to Griffin the next time he saw him at the L.A. Clippers' practice facility. As it turns out, the confusion happens quite a bit for both players.
"I came in the gym and I was like, 'Blake, someone thought I was you,' " Humphries told ESPN.com. "And he's like, 'Yeah, yeah, the same thing happens to me all the time.' It's just funny because sometimes someone will come up to me and be like, 'Blake, blah blah blah.' And I'm like, 'I'm not him.' And they think I'm being a d--- because of it. I feel bad. I'm like, 'I hope this person doesn't think it was actually Blake and I'm not trying to talk to him.' But I don't think we look alike at all. I mean, we're about the same size, the same build."Not only did Humphries go head-to-head consistently with Griffin and Warriors All-Star David Lee, but he also ran pick-and-rolls with Olympians James Harden and Carmelo Anthony. Humphries also played with All-Star Kyrie Irving, DeMar DeRozan, DeAndre Jordan, Metta World Peace, Darren Collison and Matt Barnes, among many other veterans.
Starting with Griffin, the star-studded talent on the floor helped Humphries.
"[Griffin] is a player that can do multiple things on the floor -- he's strong, he can jump, he can move," Humphries said. "So it was great to match up with him, and we had some good matchups. I also played with guys like DeAndre Jordan -- other terrific shot-blockers. It just helps your game because where I'm from in Minnesota, you'll never have that many guys on the floor. We were running on two courts, sometimes 25 NBA players in the gym. To be able to have that kind of competition is great."
Jared Zwerling, ESPN Boston
I've called Humphries Bizarro Blake for years, so this is kind of funny.
Having a state of the art training facility really goes a long way. More and more players from around the league are dropping during the offseason to work out at the facility. I believe that the Pacers worked out at the facility last summer. I knew about Harden, Melo and Artest already, but some of the others are a nice surprise. The players are getting quality competition and are able to work on establishing better relationships with players from around the league, which is something that could make a difference later on down the line.
Most players put in their own work over the course of an offseason, but it's great when you are able to have actual scrimmages with actual NBA talent in this setting. It's steps above a ProAm. It allows the Clipper players in attendance to establish some form of chemistry before training camp and they're able to test out any new nuances in their games against some of the better players in the league.
Blake, DJ, Collison, Hollins and Barnes are always around. Bullock, Wayns and Davies have been in the gym. Davies has been out here for most of the summer to my knowledge and Wayns has been hanging out with CP3. Mullens has been around. Dudley just arrived. There shouldn't be any issues of players coming into camp out of shape like we had in the past.