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Doc Rivers often says that when the Clippers start retiring jerseys (they currently don’t hang any in Staples Center), DeAndre Jordan should come first.
Out of the Lob City trio, he was the first one to join the team in the 2008 NBA Draft, and he was with the Clippers the longest, though that was almost in peril. He wasn’t just the other guy next to Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, either — Jordan was a legitimately good basketball player.
That was on display five years ago today in the final game of the regular season against the Phoenix Suns. Jordan was four rebounds shy of the Clippers single-season rebound record held by Swen Nater (1,216, set in 1980) and five offensive rebounds behind Elton Brand’s single-season record (396, set in 2002).
The first mark fell easily, as Jordan collected his fifth rebound in the first quarter. He would finish with 14 rebounds in the game, setting a mark of 1,226 rebounds in one season that still stands today.
Jordan’s second goal was more elusive. The Clippers were destroying the Suns for most of the games and were up 27 points when Jordan exited the game with 1:30 left in the third quarter. He had four offensive rebounds at that point to tie Brand’s mark, and it seemed like the two would share the record while Jordan sat for the rest of the game.
But Phoenix mounted a surprising comeback against Jordan Hamilton, Jamal Crawford, Lester Hudson, Hedo Turkoglu, and Spencer Hawes — scratch that, this was an entirely predictable comeback — in the fourth quarter, necessitating the starting lineup’s return. The Clippers needed the win to secure the no. 3 seed in the postseason because remember at this point, it was unknown that San Antonio would fall to no. 6.
As a result, with three minutes to play, Jordan and Paul checked back in with the Clippers hanging on to an 11-point lead. About 90 seconds later, Paul took a corner 3-pointer and Jordan cleared out journeyman center Earl Barron for his 397th offensive rebound of the year.
That offensive rebounding mark still stands as well, which means Jordan currently holds each of the following Clippers single-season records:
- offensive rebounds
- total rebounds
- field-goal percentage and effective field-goal percentage
- 2-point field-goal percentage
- rebounds per game
- offensive, defensive, and total rebound percentage
- offensive rating
- defensive win shares
Jordan also holds the following career records for the Clippers franchise:
- games played
- offensive, defensive, and total rebounds
- blocks
- field-goal percentage and effective field-goal percentage
- 2-point field-goal percentage
- offensive rebound percentage
It’s been a historic career for Jordan, one that will hopefully be celebrated at a later date, potentially in Inglewood. Even if he retired right now, Jordan is one of the most decorated Clippers of all time. Five years ago today marked the first time Jordan etched his name into the franchise record books.