Los Angeles Clippers: 15 players who defined Lob City

DeAndre Jordan epitomized the “Lob City” era like no other player could have, totaling more dunks than any other player in the league over those six seasons. Jordan’s 1,297 dunks lead the league by far, and he led the league in four of those six seasons — with Blake Griffin leading the league the other two years. “Lob City” was aptly named.

It was in fact Jordan who first told Griffin that Chris Paul was coming to the Clippers. That moment, caught on tape, sparked both a nickname and a new era of Clippers basketball where cellar-dwelling was not the expectation. It also spawned music tracks, memorabilia and plenty of highlights.

The 6-foot-11 Jordan may be the greatest lob threat in NBA history, soaring for dunks and able to space the floor vertically in a way few players can. The defining dunk of the “Lob City” era was Jordan’s when he took a feed from Paul and completely erased Brandon Knight’s career.

Jordan is an iron man, missing just six games over six seasons. His elite athleticism and ferocious approach to basketball led to a multitude of blocked shots, many of them spiked away from the rim like Jordan was playing volleyball. Jordan led the league over that span in games played and ranked second to Serge Ibaka in total blocks.

For all of his high-flying skill, Jordan had a mercurial personality that led him to be inconsistent at times. Doc Rivers would use a number of tactics to spur Jordan on towards excellence, including public praise for his defense — comparing him favorably to Bill Russell.

Jordan’s wish to be more involved offensively — a common refrain from star big men, even if a rarely successful one — eventually led him to the very edge of leaving for the Dallas Mavericks before the Clippers convinced him to stay. A few years later, the last remaining core piece of “Lob City” would eventually leave for the Mavericks in the summer of 2018.

Despite making just one All-Star team during his time in Los Angeles (2017), Jordan finished All-NBA three times, including on the first team in 2015-16. Twice he finished First-Team All-Defense. While never the most outspoken or well-known member of the Clippers, he brought a lot to the table as the anchor of “Lob City”.