Blake Griffin to the Nets, Does it Matter?

Blake Griffin has signed with the Brooklyn Nets for $1.2 million after being bought out and waived by the Detroit Pistons. While he spent the last three and a half years in the basketball equivalent of a black hole, Griffin finally is on a contending team again. He joins Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, DeAndre Jordan and the rest of Brooklyn’s motley crew.  

After being coldly traded to Detroit only 6 months removed from signing a massive extension, Griffin put up massive numbers. He averaged 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists) in his first full season in Detroit, but Griffin’s stats fell off a cliff in a scary way after that.  

How well will Griffin fit in with his new teammates in Brooklyn? (Tim Fuller/USA TODAY Sports)

Griffin has not played half a season in that time since his massive 2018-2019 campaign.  So, this begs the question, which Blake Griffin are the Nets getting, and does it matter with their current roster being stacked as it?

If Griffin comes into Brooklyn and looks like 85% of his former self he could have a great impact, but that is a big if considering Griffin has missed so much time in recent years. He has suffered a good number of injuries and his playing style does not exactly age well (He will be 32 on the 16th of March). We will not see high flying dunks and massive alley-oops over 7 footers anymore (Timofey Mozgov still has PTSD you know).

This season, and the bit of last season he played before his injury, he shot his worst career FG%. This year his minutes went up, but his FGA and FTA were WAY down from his career average and even from the previous year when he was injured. Expectations must be tempered here because we don’t even know what role Griffin will play on the Nets, or the health of Griffin given motivation must be low when playing in Detroit.

Do the Nets expect him to be a big?  Or will Griffin act as a ball-handling wing/slasher similar to how the Nets currently use Bruce Brown? Or does he slide into the Jeff Green type of role, which begs the question, is Griffin good enough to take minutes away from Green or Brown?

Griffin has shown, when he’s healthy, he can be a good facilitator in a modern NBA offense. He had 6 assists per game with the 17-18 Pistons, 5 ½ the next year IN DETROIT, who started most of their games with Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson on the floor (two players not known for their floor spacing or their playmaking).

So, you now add this man to a team with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden?

If Griffin can come in and play 20 minutes per game with teammates like this, surely his efficiency will go up. The opportunities to get great looks should be abundant, thus leading to better numbers for Griffin in the short term at least.  If the lineup is Harris, Durant, Irving, Harden and Griffin, what is happening to that defense? Are you coming off one of those fantastic shooters to stop Griffin who doesn't dunk anymore?   

We have seen career revivals of players like Bruce Brown and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot when they are asked to do less and focus on their roles specifically in Brooklyn. So why not Griffin, given the talent that has been amassed on this roster?

Griffin has certainly been hampered by injuries and playing directionless basketball, but  Brooklyn presents an opportunity for him to write a new story.   The Nets roster is already stacked with players that can contribute, so even if Griffin flops in Brooklyn it won’t matter.