3rd place – Elton Brand (PF)
Clippers per game averages: 38.3 minutes, 20.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1 steal, 2.3 blocks.
Clippers totals: 7 seasons (2001-02 to 2007-08), 459 games, 9,336 points, 4,710 rebounds, 1,242 assists, 438 steals, 1,039 blocks, 51.4 field goal percentage.
Honors with Clippers: 2x All-Star (2001-02 and 2005-06), 1x All-NBA 2nd team (2005-06).
Big men rankings aside, Elton Brand is one of the Los Angeles Clippers’ top-five players altogether. A 20-10 machine with the team, strong force in the paint, agile post scorer, impressive mid-range shooter and imposing shot blocker, Brand was a talented, hard working force for the Clippers all over the floor.
In 2005-06, Brand had one of the best seasons by any Clipper. As an All-Star and All-NBA Second Team player, he averaged a career-high 24.7 points on 52.7 percent shooting, 10 rebounds, 2.6 assists, one steal and 2.5 blocks per game with a 26.5 PER.
Brand was the team’s driving force that season. And despite not being able to carry them beyond the second round, he still led the Clippers to a 47-win season and a 4-1 first round victory over the Denver Nuggets.
It says a lot about the Clippers’ troubled history that that was their only playoff trip in the 2000s, but Brand was still a bonafide star in his time there. He did all he could. And continued to do so the following season in 2006-07 (his final healthy year in L.A.), averaging at least 20 points (20.5) for the fourth straight season to go along with 9.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks.
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Headlining the 2005-06 roster — also featuring Corey Maggette, Sam Cassell (both 17-point-per-game scorers), Cuttino Mobley and Chris Kaman — Brand was the leader of the Los Angeles Clippers’ best spell and only playoff victory before Chris Paul and Co. arrived.
Now out the NBA after a short spell with the Philadelphia 76ers last season, Brand has put together an impressive career. He’s 24th in league history in total blocks (1,828), a solid 67th in offensive win shares (65.8), and he’s among the best across the board for the Los Angeles Clippers.
In the franchise rankings, he sits 3rd in points (9,336), 5th in points per game (20.3), 2nd in rebounds (4,710), 5th in rebounds per game (10.3), 3rd in blocks (1,039), 4th in blocks per game (2.3), 2nd to only Chris Paul in PER (23.4), and 1st in win shares (68.3).
So, yeah, Brand is quite the Clippers star.
Next: 2nd place - One of the Clippers' greatest saviors