Last Monday, the Detroit Pistons acquired star forward Blake Griffin in a trade from the Los Angeles Clippers for Avery Bradley, Tobias Harris, Boban Marjonovic, a future first-round draft pick, and a second-round draft pick. Detroit also received Willie Reed and Brice Johnson.
The deal came as quite a surprise to many, though perhaps it shouldn’t have.
Last summer, after losing “point god” Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets, LA threw all their eggs into Griffin’s basket. They offered him a guaranteed $171 million over five years in order to get him to stay with the organization that drafted him and turned him into the star he is. They even put him on a T-shirt with Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Muhammad Ali to represent “pioneer.” The organization had promised to have his number 32 hanging in the rafters of the Staples Center after his long career as a Clipper came to an end. Over the summer, it seemed as though the Clippers were centered around Griffin just as they had been when they drafted him in 2009, but were poised to contend in the Western Conference this year.
However, just like they have throughout his career, injuries plagued Griffin early in the 2017 season. Just before Thanksgiving, Griffin sprained the MCL in his left knee, making him sit out for over a month. Injuries have sidelined Griffin his whole career, which have held him back from being both a team centerpiece and a perennial All-Star. The risk of injuries makes the $171 million contract looming over his head even more daunting. But it wasn’t just Griffin that was hit with the injury train, it was the Clippers. Guys that they brought in to help fill the void that Paul left— Patrick Beverley, Milos Teodosic, Danilo Gallinari— have all missed significant time this season, with Beverley sidelined for the year with a knee injury. All signs pointed that the Clippers were in need of a rebuild, and if they didn’t see that happening around the 6’10” power forward from the University of Oklahoma, they needed a buyer.
Insert the Detroit Pistons. Detroit is a team barely on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. They are in desperate need of a star player— Andre Drummond, though an All-Star, just isn’t enough to carry a team. Griffin, if healthy, could be that star.
The Pistons had a great start to the 2017 season, but the team had started to fall apart. Point guard Reggie Jackson was hurt for a good part of the season with an ankle sprain. Avery Bradley, who had come over from the Boston Celtics, wasn’t producing offensively like he was expected to, and his trademark defense seemingly was forgotten back in Boston. With the trade deadline looming, they put him up for sale. Ticket sales at Little Caesars Arena were dwindling. So making a deal for one of the NBA’s biggest names is a good play.
So, what does this deal look like going forward?
For the Clippers, the rebuild is in full swing. The question still remains whether or not the Clippers will try to deal center DeAndre Jordan or blossoming star Lou Williams before the trade deadline. The team could get good assets from a contender looking for the last piece to solidify their playoff push (think Jordan to Cleveland or Williams basically anywhere). Regardless, the Clippers have freed up cap space to try to make a splash in free agency over the coming summers and could attempt to sign the likes of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Paul George, while still being competitive for the next year. Reliant on two almost-stars, a mixed bag of role players, and a surprisingly good crop of G-League players, the Clippers are once again back in the mid-to-low rankings in the Western Conference, after sitting near the top of the standings for the last four seasons. But don’t lose hope, Clippers fans, just like it did in 2011, the tides will turn back in your favor.
It also means that the only thing Lincoln, Einstein, Dr. King, Ali, and Griffin have in common is that they are not members of the LA Clippers.
As for the Pistons, they now have the pieces for “Lob City 2.0.” With Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin manning the front court, the Pistons should be able to break into the playoffs in the laughably-bad Eastern Conference. Currently seated ninth in the East, they have won all three contests since Griffin joined the team, including one win against the Miami Heat, the team holding the seventh spot in the standings. However, Detroit does need to make some moves in the offseason as well, in order to solidify their backcourt.
It seems there was no winner or loser in this trade. Los Angeles is able to start a rebuild and received good young talent in Tobias Harris and Boban Marjonovic, while Detroit got the star that can turn them into a winning team. The trade caps off the start of what could be a volatile next few months in the NBA, with All-Stars potentially signing with new clubs.
The Clippers travel to Detroit to play the Pistons on Friday, February 9.