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HOUSTON -- The gaudy numbers that DeAndre Jordan has put up while Blake Griffin has been out have become commonplace. He had 22 points and 19 rebounds on Wednesday in the Clippers' 110-105 loss to the Houston Rockets. He is averaging 19 points and 19.1 rebounds over the past six games without Griffin, and the Clippers have gone 4-2 without their star forward. But there was only one number Jordan was thinking about before and after the game: 35. Before every game Jordan tweets out, "#35 @TobiOye ..." He also has the name and number inscribed on wristbands he wears when he plays. They pay tribute to Tobi Oyedeji, who was a standout high school basketball player from Jordan's hometown of Bellaire, Texas, and had committed four years ago to Texas A&M, Jordan's alma mater. Jordan's younger brother Brett was Oyedeji's high school teammate, and Oyedeji was like an extended member of the Jordan family before he died in a car accident as he was driving home from Bellaire's prom night. He was just five days away from celebrating his 18th birthday. On Wednesday Jordan honored Oyedeji by having 35 kids from Bellaire at the game. "When I was little I really didn't get that opportunity I had to watch it on TV," Jordan said. "I feel like it's fun to have someone from the same city you're from or the same neighborhood you're from and grew up the same way you did [playing]. Everybody doesn't have to be an athlete but getting that perspective is fun." For Jordan to keep Oyedeji's name alive and give 35 kids from their hometown a chance to experience their first NBA game is one of the highlights of the season for Jordan and something he says he will do for as long as he is playing. "It means a lot to me," Jordan said. "Everything I do, I do it for 35. Especially to do it back here in Houston where we're both from is humbling."
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