Blake Griffin is a 5x All-Star, 4x All NBA participant, and former rookie of the year. None of those stats and accolades outweighs the fact that his whole career has been with the Los Angeles Clippers. A franchise previously owned by a racist in Donald Sterling and has a total of 13 playoff appearances currently in its 47th year in the NBA, never making it past the second round. After the Clippers made 6 straight playoff berths with Blake Griffin on the roster (almost half in franchise history) and paying him a 171 million dollar contract, they traded him on January 29th of this year. This week ESPN’s Marc Spears of The Undefeated sat down with Griffin, he expressed his feelings on the trade.
“I haven’t put much thought into it, to be honest. I’ve been so focused on making this transition and [adjusting] to this change that I haven’t put that much thought into it. I never want to be in a place where I’m not wanted. Coming here made me realize what a franchise looks like,”
Griffin speaks on the fact that he might not have been with a real franchise, and he might be right. Griffin spent his whole career the Clippers, got hurt his first year and did not play. Then he came back and bared through the Baron Davis days, before him and Chris Paul turned LA into Lob City. While even for a brief moment, Blake Griffin stole the attention from the Los Angeles Lakers in LA, that is historic.
“You always hear guys say that, ‘Basketball is a business,’ and all that,” Griffin said. “It’s so much different when you have had a relationship with a certain amount of people for so long and been at a place for so long. Someone always promises you this is what we are doing and six months later. It shows people’s true colors. Other than that, at the end of the day, you have to realize it’s a business.”
Blake Griffin is now playing for the Detroit Pistons, who are fighting for the slim chance to make the playoffs. Since arriving in Detroit, Griffin has averaged 20 points, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds. The Detroit Pistons are 9-14 since his arrival.