Blake Griffin expected to sign with Brooklyn Nets

After being bought out of his contract by the Detroit Pistons, Blake Griffin is expected to sign with the Brooklyn Nets.

This past Friday, Blake Griffin and the Detroit Pistons agreed to a buyout in which the forward will return $13.3 million to the team. From there, interested teams had to wait until Sunday for Griffin to clear waivers. There was already a heavy favorite in the Griffin sweepstakes as soon as the news dropped. Now, it is close to being official.

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Griffin is expected to sign with the Brooklyn Nets. Griffin will now join Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden to further solidify them as the next super team.

Nets: Blake Griffin arrives in Brooklyn to compete for NBA title

As mentioned earlier, the Nets were identified as the favorites to sign Griffin once he clears waivers. According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors were also interested in Griffin’s services. ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski also identified the Portland Trail Blazers as a potential landing spot for Griffin.

Of course, joining the Nets super team gave Griffin the best opportunity to contend for an NBA title.

Griffin joined the Pistons back in 2018 in a trade from the Clippers. Interestingly, the move happened less than a year after the forward signed a five-year, $171 million contract with Los Angeles. Griffin was strong in his first full season in Detroit (2018-19), earning him an All-Star nomination. Yet, injuries have limited him the past two campaigns. The Pistons held out Griffin in hopes of finding a trade partner, but his exorbitant contract made that difficult. Thus, they agreed to the buyout in which Griffin returned money to reach free agency.

In 20 games with the Pistons this season, Griffin has averaged 12.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists, while shooting 36.5-percent from the field.

Now, we wait for the signing to become official. When it does, Griffin will join a red-hot Nets team that looks destined to represent the Eastern Conference in the 2021 NBA Finals. If Griffin can remain healthy, that goal does not look like that much of a challenge.