Blake Griffin is one of the biggest names out there in the 2017 offseason, and plenty of teams will be going after him in free agency.
Blake Griffin officially opted out of his deal with the Los Angeles Clippers, and enters the 2017 NBA free agency period as one of the biggest names out there looking to get signed.
Throughout his career, Griffin has averaged 21.5 points, 9.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, and was a big part of the Clippers’ success in the regular season over the last seven seasons. However, the team could never crack into the Western Conference Finals, no matter how well they ended their regular season seeding-wise.
Griffin has plenty to look for this offseason, but who knows where his priorities lie? Some players focus more on the financial piece, while others, like Kevin Durant, will sacrifice some of their money to make sure they stay with a contender who can win titles to help boost his legacy. Griffin could make a lot of money back in Los Angeles, but may have more success elsewhere.
The possibility is still there for a return to the Clippers, but there are plenty of enticing options out there for Griffin in this year’s free agency. Here are five potential destinations the NBA All-Star should consider.
5. New York Knicks
This may turn into a toxic situation, and doesn’t make a ton of sense, but Blake Griffin could be a good replacement for the Knicks if they’re looking to get rid of Kristaps Porzingis, and there may be mutual interest.
In a list of Griffin’s favorite NBA cities, he listed New York, and specifically the Knicks over the Nets. He apparently loves Madison Square Garden, and a switch over to the East Coast would still give him the high-profile arena that he’d be leaving in the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
The Knicks aren’t a winning situation, but the Western Conference hasn’t done Griffin any favors, either. He’s been trapped with the Clippers throughout his career, and the team hasn’t made it to the Western Conference Finals in his entire career, no matter how talented their roster has been. It’s tough to get much better than DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul on your side, and they still couldn’t get it done.
New York would provide Griffin with a big market to play in, and the chance to avoid the Golden State Warriors out in the Western Conference that have given him and the Clippers fits over the last few years.
While there are better options to join in the Eastern Conference and battle LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers with, which we’ll get into later, this would be a solid start and a good replacement for Phil Jackson to pursue if he rids the team of Porzingis this offseason.
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
Just imagine a starting lineup next season with Jimmy Butler, Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Ricky Rubio and Blake Griffin dominating out in the Western Conference.
While it may not be possible, and it surely wouldn’t be a very good move when it comes to the long-term direction of the Timberwolves out in the West, adding Griffin could be a solid move to get a veteran presence in the young lineup, and build up a contender to battle with the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs. Griffin would find himself on another super lineup, and him and Butler together on a roster would be enough to make a team succeed, let alone adding Towns and Wiggins.
The cap space wouldn’t work out long-term, as the team will obviously want to keep Towns, Wiggins and Butler around for as long as possible together, and Griffin should be getting big money in free agency. However, a short-term deal that allows each side to evaluate things after a season or two, and lets Griffin come and play for a contender, may be just what the doctor ordered to help salvage Griffin’s career.
It’s not the most attractive option, and Minnesota surely isn’t the same type of market that New York, Los Angeles or even Boston would provide for Griffin for the next few years. However, if he wants to make a team a winner and potentially build up a battle for the Warriors, the Timberwolves provide a pretty safe bet to make that happen.
3. Los Angeles Clippers
It’s tough to talk about potential destinations for Blake Griffin in free agency without discussing the possibility for a reunion in Los Angeles with the Clippers.
The money is really the only reason this would happen, and the potential of picking up a player like LeBron or Paul George either in free agency or by trade in the next two seasons would surely help. However, Griffin has experienced about the peak of how the Clippers can do out in the Western Conference, and he’d have to decide whether he wants to make the most money possible in his career, or if he wants to go chase a ring elsewhere with a team that can battle against the Golden State Warriors.
Griffin definitely won’t be contending by returning to the Clippers, as they proved over the last few years with their lack of success in the playoffs. They’re potentially losing Chris Paul and possibly DeAndre Jordan if they decide to really blow things up. You wouldn’t be joining a loaded roster, but you’d be getting the most money possible with the Clippers’ max contract offer.
Griffin ironically left Los Angeles off of his list of favorite cities in the league, but said he did it because he had already played in L.A. and wanted to show other places some love. It’s tough to imagine Griffin would realistically want to leave a market like Los Angeles, but it all depends on whether money or success is how he wants to remembered in the league for his career.
2. San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are a team with very little cap space to work with, so signing Blake Griffin to a deal that he’d realistically enjoy would be tough to actually pull off. However, the Spurs provide one of the best chances at a title, and that should be where Griffin’s priorities lie at this point in his career.
Griffin would provide a unique fit to the Spurs lineup, and depending on how the team handles this offseason, they could build up quite the lineup to battle the Golden State Warriors with next year. Current Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge is reportedly unhappy with his current role out in San Antonio, and he may be on the move shortly to help clear some cap space for the Spurs to make moves. If they get rid of Aldridge, Griffin could slide right in and help the team compete instantly.
A lineup with Kawhi Leonard, Pau Gasol, and Griffin, alongside whoever they stick as their starting guards, would be a loaded lineup, and Griffin could help fill the void left by Tim Duncan’s departure. It’s not quite the same, and Griffin’s injury history makes it tough to want to make all those moves to sign him, but it may be worth it to build up a super team out in the Western Conference.
The Spurs would give Griffin the chance to go at his former team and legitimately chase a ring, and it may be worth taking a little less money than what he could earn elsewhere to make that happen.
1. Boston Celtics
Arguably the best chance to sign Blake Griffin, the Celtics provide an opportunity to give the former Clipper the chance to compete and make some serious money in the process, and give the most attractive situation to sign into.
Griffin listed Boston as one of his favorite NBA cities, and the team has been rumored to snag him for years at this point, especially last offseason while they were going after Al Horford. The Celtics are in a rare spot, as they earned the top seed in the Eastern Conference last season, advanced to the conference finals, and also had a top-three pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.
The biggest reason the Celtics struggled in the postseason was because of their lack of rebounding, and Griffin would definitely provide instant help in that department. The team needs someone who can help them out when Horford struggles on the boards, or gets covered tightly.
The Celtics are also looking to add Gordon Hayward to their lineup this offseason, and a lineup of Isaiah Thomas, Jayson Tatum, Hayward, Griffin and Horford would help to provide a well-rounded lineup to battle LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Next: NBA Free Agency 2017: One trade every team should make
The Celtics give Griffin the best chance to go chase that ring, as the team showed this year that they’re just steps away from taking down the Cavs out in the East. It’d give Griffin the chance to get out of the Western Conference, get his money, and get on an instant contender, and it’s likely his best-case scenario in free agency this summer.