Pretty much everyone saw this coming, but former Oklahoma Sooners power forward Blake Griffin has been named by EA Sports as the coverboy for NCAA Basketball 10. Griffin left Oklahoma after his sophomore season this past year and declared for the NBA Draft, which will be held tomorrow, June 25th.
In his short two-year college career, he racked up a litany of honors and records, including the Big 12, Associated Press, Naismith, Sporting News, and John Wooden player of the year awards. Griffin is expected to be the No. 1 draft pick, which is currently held by the Los Angeles Clippers.
NCAA Basketball 10 is being developed at EA Canada, and it looks to build on last year’s successes while refining gameplay and other features. Look for the game to hit stores for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 this holiday season. The full Xbox 360 cover artwork, featuring Griffin, is in the gallery below, and there’s a press release after the jump. I hope, for Griffin’s sake, that he either turns the LA Clippers into a winner, or escapes the franchise soon.
Projected No.1 Draft Pick Blake Griffin Named Cover Athlete of EA SPORTS NCAA Basketball 10
Game Brings Added Depth to Team Styles of Play and Authenticity
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - June 23, 2009 - Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) announced today that Blake Griffin, former Oklahoma Sooner and the projected top pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, will be the new face of EA SPORTS™ NCAA Basketball 10. Griffin has an explosive presence, exciting college stadiums with massive dunks, huge blocks, and aggressive rebounds, and was a natural choice to represent the college game as cover athlete for NCAA Basketball 10. Griffin is the consensus national Player of the Year, winning the Big 12, Associated Press, Naismith, Sporting News, and John Wooden Player of the Year awards, and led his team to an Elite Eight appearance in the 2009 March Madness Tournament, where they lost to eventual champions, UNC. The 2009 NBA Draft is presented by EA SPORTS.
“Seeing myself on the cover of NCAA Basketball 10 is such a great tribute to my time at Oklahoma,” said Griffin. “I loved playing in front of passionate fans and competing against some of the best schools in the country. Now I am looking forward to competing at the next level against the best players in the world.”
NCAA Basketball 10 brings the emotion, intensity, and spirit of college basketball by capturing every detail in the stadium, from cheerleaders and mascots to wild crowds and real NCAA Basketball announcers. NCAA Basketball 10 builds on a new game engine introduced last year, refining and improving core gameplay functions, and adding more depth to the popular ‘styles of play’ and ‘set your tempo’ features, making NCAA Basketball 10 a strategic and entirely unique basketball gameplay experience.
NCAA Basketball 10, which is licensed by The Collegiate Licensing Company, is currently in development under the EA SPORTS brand by EA Canada in Vancouver, B.C., and will be available in North America this holiday season. The game will be available for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. The game is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information, log onto easports.com/ncaabasketball10.
EA SPORTS™ is the leading interactive sports software brand in the world, with top-selling titles and franchises including Madden NFL Football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA® Football and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR®.
LAUNCH GALLERY (1 IMAGES)
Samit Sarkar is a founding Destructoid editor and go-to Sports guy. Samit was the son of the Duke of Knees, rescued from a burning village in the afghan desert by a golden condor. He is an ace Backgammon player and lost both legs in a whaling tour. He lives for free in a nursery in Scotland where he teaches monks how to capture butterflies without hurting them.
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