J-Speaks: Clippers and Pistons Make Blockbuster Trade

Late Monday, the Los Angeles Clippers sent shockwaves throughout the entire NBA as they ended their association with perhaps their most accomplished player in franchise history. A player who went from being Rookie of the Year eight years ago, into a perennial All-Star, All-NBA performer, and consistent playoff participant. The other part of this story was injuries, and underachievement in the postseason where they never reached the Western Conference Finals, even though he played alongside a dynamic center, and one of the best floor generals in NBA history. In the blink of an eye, he was dealt, and now will try to make an even better name in the Motor City. 

The Los Angeles Clippers (25-25) sent five-time All-Star Blake Griffin to the Detroit Pistons, along with forward/center Willie Reed, and forward Brice Johnson in exchange for forward Tobias Harris, defensive perimeter ace in guard Avery Bradley, center Boban Marjanovic, a 2018 First-Round pick, and a 2019 Second-Round pick. 

“Trading Blake Griffin was an extremely difficult decision,” Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank said prior to the team’s tilt versus the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night on TNT. “Blake’s obviously one of the greatest players to put on a Clipper uniform. He led a huge centerpiece of obviously the greatest era of Clipper basketball.” 

It was just this past summer that Griffin, now 28-years of age re-signed a five-year $173 million deal with the Clippers was at the forefront of a team that was this highlight-reel squadron that for years was second fiddle to the 16-time World Champion Los Angeles Lakers that became not only relevant, but a consistent winner. Griffin worked himself into being a superstar in a city that only responds to stars, with his ability to dunk the basketball, as well as play make for his teammates. His athletic prowess became must watch television and earned the Clippers a splashy nickname— “Lob City”—and the main reason the Staples Center was packed each night the team took the hardwood. 

The Clippers had another heartbreaking end in the postseason when they lost in the opening round to the Utah Jazz in seven games. 

After nine-time All-Star Chris Paul engineered a trade to the Houston Rockets before the draft last June, the team moved quickly to re-sign Griffin as mentioned earlier to a max deal, which was on the heels of showering him with video tributes, as well as made up t-shirts comparing him with the likes of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Muhammad Ali, John F. Kennedy, and Albert Einstein during their recruiting pitch. 

Despite his best efforts during the 2017-18 NBA campaign, Griffin was unable to resurrect the team as a legitimate title contender without not only Paul, but J.J. Redick, and Sixth Man extraordinaire Jamal Crawford who left for the Philadelphia 76ers, and Minnesota Timberwolves respectably over the summer. 

While they were one game out of the No. 8 and final playoff spot in the Western Conference entering Tuesday night’s action, sources say the Clippers felt they have plateaued having to depend on G-League callups like C.J. Williams, and Jawun Evans, who had to play major minutes throughout this season because of the injuries to key players like Patrick Beverly, who has been shelved for the season because of knee surgery; Danilo Gallinari, Austin Rivers, and Griffin, who missed a month due to a sprained MCL in his left knee. It was that injury, according to sources that raised the white flag to Clippers’ Owner Steve Ballmer, Griffin’s biggest fan. 

As this season progressed, it became very clear that the Clippers were no longer a playoff contender, but their window to contend for a championship was closed shut and showed no signs of reopening anytime soon. That opened the door for trade talks with the Pistons in the last two weeks, and they came to the table with a deal that the Clippers accepted. 

Regardless of that, sources said that the mood on Monday afternoon around the organization was described as “terrible,” and it showed on the face of head coach Glenn “Doc” Rivers on Tuesday. 

“Trading Blake No. 1 was hard, obviously,” Rivers said. “Blake was great for us. I really believe Blake put this franchise on the map. This franchise hasn’t had a lot of great history. You get a guy like Blake, and he started it. D.J. [DeAndre Jordan], and Chris, it was really Blake who started it for us, in a lot of ways with his name, and his good play.” 

We need to remember the Clippers before Griffin, Paul, and Jordan got there were the laughing stock of professional sports. In their first 41 seasons in Southern California, they made the playoffs just seven times. They have been in the postseason entering the 2017-18 campaign six consecutive seasons, winning over 50 games the last five seasons in succession. 

That shift came two years after the Clippers drafted Griffin with the No. 1 overall pick out of the University of Oklahoma in the 2009 draft. He did miss what would have been his rookie season after sustaining a fractured kneecap prior to the start of the 2009-10 regular season. 

He made his debut in 2010, and won the 2011 Kia Rookie of the Year, and earning the first of his five All-Star selections, averaging 22.5 points, and 12.1 boards. 

He really was at the height of his powers when he won the 2011 Slam Dunk contest at All-Star Weekend in L.A. when he dunked over a car. 

That led to a slue of ad campaigns that were developed around Griffin’s quirky personality, which also led to him creating his own comedy bits on his YouTube channel, and for the Funny or Die website. 

That did not deter him from his responsibilities to the Clippers, and his continued great play on the hardwood sold tickets, suites, and other amenities for the Clippers at Staples Center, where they did the unthinkable of selling out their home games more regularly than their co-tenants the Lakers. 

In 2011, the Clippers acquired Paul from the then New Orleans Hornets, who originally been acquired by the Lakers, but then Commissioner David Stern, the acting chief decision maker for the Hornets at the time of the league purchasing the team in 2010 to keep them in the “Big Easy” vetoed the proposed deal, allowing the Clippers to step in to acquire the great floor general. 

They promptly became a championship contender with perennial All-Star guard, Griffin, and the emerging Jordan. 

The team though did go any further than the Semifinals, with their most heartbreaking collapse coming in 2015 blowing a 3-1 series lead to the Houston Rockets, where they blew a 19-point lead in Game 6 at home, losing the series in seven games. What made it even more difficult to accept is that the likes of Josh Smith, Corey Brewer, and Jason Terry were the stars of Game 6, and not All-Star guard James Harden. 

The hope now for the Clippers is that they can remain competitive under Coach Rivers, with the additions of Harris, and Bradley joining Gallinari, who has been on the shelf for a lengthy part of this season with a glute injury. 

The one good thing if any about trading Griffin is getting his high salary off the books, which will allow the Clippers, who are ½ game behind the Denver Nuggets (26-25) for the No. 8, and final playoff spot in the West to be a serious player in the free agent market one summer from now, having $40 million in possible cap space available. 

That means though deciding whether to keep Jordan, who is very likely to opt out the last year of his deal, and become, an unrestricted free agent this July, seeking a huge payday, and Lou Williams, who has been spectacular for the Clippers this season at age 31. Both Jordan, and Williams, who will also be an unrestricted free agent this summer are two other Clippers that have had their names in trade rumors as well, and if the Clippers want to have a crack at being able to get back to being a playoff perennial in the West, tying up major money into either one of them seems high unlikely, making the watch on what happens leading up to the trade deadline very interesting. 

Those draft picks the Clippers acquired in the Griffin deal, the First-Rounder is protected for spots 1-4 in the Draft Lottery over the next three years through 2020. It becomes unprotected in the spring of 2021. 

Turning to the Pistons side of things, they have hit a road block in the East after getting off to a 14-6 beginning. They entered their tilt versus the Cleveland Cavaliers with eight straight defeats; ranking 19^th in the NBA in home attendance, despite playing in their new gym, Little Caesars Arena, which they share with the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL, and represented the symbol of the re-emergence of the new downtown Detroit, MI. 

Currently the Pistons (24-26) are two games in the loss column, and one game overall behind the Philadelphia 76ers (24-24) for the No. 8 and final playoff spot in the East.

This is not what head coach and President of Basketball Operations Stan Van Gundy had in mind when he two summers ago gave a five-year, $130 million extension to center Andre Drummond, who was named as a replacement for the 67 Annual NBA All-Star Game in L.A. next month, and an five-year $80 deal for point guard Reggie Jackson, who missed his 16^th game on Tuesday because of a serious sprained ankle; and engineered trades for Harris in season a couple of years ago, and over the summer Bradley. 

“It been a hell of a 24 hours,” Drummond said to NBATV/TNT’s Dennis Scott before the game about the Pistons acquiring Griffin. “Real excited to have Blake here.” 

Harris was the Pistons leading scorer at 18.1 points per game, and he was their best three-point shooter at 40.9 percent. The acquisition of Bradley from the Boston Celtics over the summer for forward Marcus Morris was a gamble being that he was going to be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end. The Pistons gambled that he would play well, and they would re-sign him. That is why they let last season’s starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walk in free agency, and he signed a one-year deal with the Lakers. 

To bring how much the team has struggled recently into context, they have gone 3-17 the last 20 games Bradley has played in, and with rookie First-Round pick Luke Kennard getting more minutes made Bradley basically expendable. 

The Pistons top brass hopes that the acquisition of Griffin can get them into the playoffs this year, and eventually a contender in the East, like they were in the early 2000s, where they won a title in 2004. 

“We are serious about winning, and this is a major move to improve our team,” Pistons owner Tom Gores said in a press release announcing the trade late on Monday. “Blake Griffin is one of the NBA’s elite players, and when you get an opportunity to add that kind of talent, you take it.” 

“He’s a great fit for our team, and will bring a combination of toughness, and athleticism that will elevate our team, and excite our fan base.” 

While Griffin brings an arsenal of talent to the Pistons, he will also bring a history of being injured as well. 

A staff infection in his elbow, and a quad injury shelved him throughout the 2015-16 season, and it culminated in a tear in the quad in Game 4 of the Clippers opening round series that season with the Trail Blazers, who also lost Paul in the same game to a broken hand. Both players were lost for the remainder of the series, and the Clippers lost the series in six games. Last season, Griffin missed the last three games of the Clippers opening round loss versus the Jazz with a plantar plate injury to his right big toe.

Perhaps the most discouraging injury Griffin sustained happened in 2016 when he broke his hand in a fight with his good friend, and then-Clippers assistant equipment manager Matias Testi outside of a Toronto restaurant during a road trip. Griffin did apologize to Testi, but his services were not retained. 

Even after that rough incident, which would have put a serious tear in one’s reputation with a fan base, Griffin was still a beloved in Southern California. That all concluded on Monday in what one league source said, “It was a (bleeping) hard decision.” It is one that puts both franchises on a new course. For the Pistons, a chance of getting back into the playoffs with a player who can score, rebound, and facilitate for others. It also gives them what they hope is a compliment to Drummond, who he described as, “a monster.” He was that, and then some in the Pistons (23-26) 125-114 win over the Cavs (30-20) on Tuesday night with 21 points, 22 boards, seven assists, three steals, and three blocks, ending the team’s eight-game losing streak. 

In his debut, Griffin, had 24 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and two blocks, going 6 for 12 from the field, and 11 for 13 from the free throw line in leading the Pistons to a 104-102 victory versus the Memphis Grizzlies (18-33), who lost their fifth in succession on the road on Thursday night. Sustained their fifth defeat by two points this season, and their league leading seventh by two points or less. 

Griffin joined a list of players who had at, or over 20 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists with their new team, and won in the last 40 seasons. That list consists of NBA on TNT analyst Kevin Garnett, who did with the Boston Celtics in 2007; Hall of Famer, and fellow NBA on TNT studio analyst Charles Barkley, who did in 1992 with the Phoenix Suns; Five-time NBA champion with the Chicago Bulls, and Detroit Pistons Ron Harper, who did it in 1989 with the Los Angeles Clippers; and former Golden State Warriors’ forward/guard Lewis Lloyd did it with the Houston Rockets in 1983. 

Drummond, who along with the injured Reggie Jackson showered Griffin with Gatorade during his FOX Sports Detroit postgame interview also had a double-double of 14 points, 15 rebounds, to go along with three steals. This was Drummond’s 28^th game with at least 15 rebounds. 

“I got the opportunity to play with DeAndre Jordan for many years. Andre is that (type of player, but) he’s bigger, and more physical,” Griffin said earlier in the week. “I’m excited about that development, that growth, and hopefully I’ll be able to help him. I’ve been a fan of a lot of the guys on this team for a long time.”

After his first game as a Piston, Griffin, who became the first player to register 20-plus points, 10-plus boards, and five-plus assists in a Pistons debut since NBA on TNT’s, and Inside Stuff host Grant Hill on Nov. 4, 1994 said to reporters by his locker, “We got some guys that can really play.” 

“Came up with big stops when we needed them. Anthony Tolliver hit some big shots. Playing with Andre was a blast.” 

“I’ve been playing basketball my whole life. Played in some big games. There was a lot of adrenaline, and like I’ve said the energy from the fans was awesome. I’m very excited about the future, this season especially. But the future in general. We got a high ceiling with this group.”

One thing if any that should motivate Griffin for the rest of this season, and each time he faces the Clippers in the future is the fact that he found out that he was being traded to the Pistons on Twitter. 

“I just wish that I had known or had the opportunity to talk to somebody beforehand. Finding out through Twitter, and through other people is a tough way to find out, when you’ve been with a franchise for so long,” Griffin said to ESPN’s Nick Friedell after his introductory presser with the Detroit media on Thursday. “But at the end of the day, basketball is a business, and I want to play where a team wants me, and that’s why I’m excited to be hear.”

While there is a clear direction in the “Motor City,” the Clippers future for the rest of this season, and their future going forward remains unknown. We might have a little idea of what happens after the trade deadline on Thursday, Feb. 8. 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of www.nba.com/games/20180201/MEMDET#/preveiw; 1/29/18 www.nba.com article, “L.A. Clippers Deal Blake Griffin to Detroit Pistons after Superstar Unable to Elevate Team,” by David Aldridge; 1/30/18 8 p.m. “Players Only Pregame Show,” on TNT, presented by Autotrader with Chris Webber, Isiah Thomas, Baron Davis, and Shaquille O’Neal; 1/30/18 8 p.m. contest between the Cleveland Cavaliers versus Detroit Pistons on TNT with Brent Barry, Derek Fisher, Grant Hill, and Dennis Scott; 2/1/18 3 p.m. edition “NBA: The Jump,” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols, Zach Lowe, and Tracy McGrady; 2/2/18 1 a.m. edition of “Inside the NBA,” presented by Kia on TNT with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal; www.espn.com/nba/standings; www.nba.com/games/20180201/MEMDET#/boxscore; www.nba.com/games/20180130/CLEDET#/preview; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Los_Angeles_Clippers_seasons.