The Detroit Pistons officially parted ways with veteran forward Blake Griffin earlier in the week, coming to a contractual buyout and making him an unrestricted free-agent.
Griffin has now found himself a new home, inking a deal with the Brooklyn Nets. He’ll be teaming up with the likes of Kyrie Irving, James Harden and Kevin Durant in hopes of winning his first career title.
Several teams were in the running for his services, including the Los Angeles Lakers. So why did he choose Brooklyn?
“They have a need for a four-man,” Griffin explained. “I’ve always had a lot of respect for (head coach) Steve Nash and all of the guys that they have. (General manager) Sean Marks has done a great job there. It was a tough decision and I wanted to be on a team that was contending.”
The Oklahoma native was then asked during his Q/A session on the Bleacher Report app with fans of what he’d miss most about playing in the Motor City.
For Griffin, it was an easy answer.
“The people,” he said. “I have great relationships with not just people in the organization but with people in Michigan in general.”
Of course, he’s not been shy in talking about his appreciation for people who are more down to earth.
“The people (of Michigan) remind me much more of people from back home in Oklahoma,” Griffin said in 2018. “Everyone’s genuinely interested in just being nice.”
In 2019, he explained why he prefers his game day routine in the Motor City rather than in Los Angeles, where he admittedly felt trapped at times.
“During the season, I go to practice, I come home, I eat, I take a nap and I watch basketball, almost every single day. I love it. And in Michigan it is awesome because I have an awesome backyard and I don’t feel trapped. I can go drive places,” he said.
– – Quotes via 97.1 The Ticket Link – –
