Dec. 18--DeAndre Jordan knows what his role is for the Clippers -- get rebounds and defend.
It's not the most glamorous job on the court, but it makes a world of difference for his team.
"Not a lot of guys are wiling to accept a role like that, and he does it well," Blake Griffin said. "I say this all of the time, but his worth on the court goes way beyond even the stats. Tonight it looks great, but there are some games where it might not look like this, but he had just as big of an impact."
In the Clippers' 102-100 win over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, Jordan finished with 23 rebounds, nearly half of the Clippers' total of 51. He's leading the league in rebounding, averaging 13 a game.
What's even more impressive is that he had such a strong rebounding performance against the Pacers, the third-highest rebounding team in the league, averaging 45.8 a game.
"It's too early to start campaigning for defensive player of the year and all that, but, my gosh, what he's doing every night is unbelievable," Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said.
"He does it every night, doesn't ask for the ball, sets picks, rolls, still scores because he's so active. He's the perfect guy to have on the team, he really is. Especially a team when you have a bunch of guys who want to score, you need a DJ and we have him, and the way he's playing has just been remarkable."
Jordan said he doesn't keep track of how many rebounds he has a game, nor does he dwell on the stat sheet afterward.
"I'm just happy that I had more than Blake [Griffin]," Jordan joked.
