James Harden, DeMar DeRozan, Jimmy Butler or even Russell Westbrook and even Nicolas Batum. Here is a mix of players, more or less at the top of their game, who are 33 years old. It is also the age of Blake Grffinbut the former All-Star interior is on a wickedly slippery slope.
As one might fear, his knee injuries took away 70% of his qualities, and it is very difficult for him to keep his place in the NBA.
This season, he will have waited for the start of training camps to receive a call from the Celtics. But the prestige of the franchise and the level of the current workforce suit him perfectly.
” It’s obvious that beyond the history of this franchise, Boston has always been one of those places where gamers think it would be a pretty cool experience to play there.“, he said Monday. ” Beyond that, just their core, having Brad [Stevens] in the front office now, the coaches they have. The bases they laid last year, I think that sets the scene. It’s an opportunity I couldn’t pass up“.
“I did not come here demanding a specific role”
What Blake Griffin does not say is that he arrives in a workforce that was built by the Draft, with an almost linear progression, to reach the NBA finals last year. Even though the franchise is rocked by the Udoka affair, it’s a more serene environment than Brooklyn. Maybe it will suit him better to express himself in the relay of Al Horford and Robert Williams.
” I can bring some stability off the bench”, believes the former Clipper. ” They obviously have pivots with Rob [Williams] et al [Horford] who play a lot and Al has been in the league for 40 years now. Just stability. No matter what they want from me, it’s going to be about being helpful. I didn’t come here demanding a specific role. It’s just to fill in the gaps to help this team win a championship. »
We can no longer count on him to dunk on everyone and go to the circle from the free throw line. Now he has to use his head and his shot to make the difference.
” After my rookie year, I worked on my shooting as a priority. But you also have to use your head and play more cerebrally. Also, in the NBA, you have to have a good sense of yourself. If your level of talent, your humility and your self-awareness are aligned, then I think you can maximize your time in the NBA. Sometimes you see that it doesn’t line up, and players’ careers are shortened because of it. »
| Blake Griffin | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2010-11 | LAKE | 82 | 38 | 50.6 | 29.2 | 64.2 | 3.3 | 8.8 | 12.1 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 0.8 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 22.5 |
| 2011-12 | LAKE | 66 | 36 | 54.9 | 12.5 | 52.1 | 3.3 | 7.6 | 10.9 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 20.7 |
| 2012-13 | LAKE | 80 | 33 | 53.8 | 17.9 | 66.0 | 2.3 | 6.0 | 8.3 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 18.0 |
| 2013-14 | LAKE | 80 | 36 | 52.8 | 27.3 | 71.5 | 2.4 | 7.1 | 9.5 | 3.9 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 0.6 | 24.1 |
| 2014-15 | LAKE | 67 | 35 | 50.2 | 40.0 | 72.8 | 1.9 | 5.7 | 7.6 | 5.3 | 2.9 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 21.9 |
| 2015-16 | LAKE | 35 | 33 | 49.9 | 33.3 | 72.7 | 1.5 | 6.9 | 8.4 | 4.9 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 21.4 |
| 2016-17 | LAKE | 61 | 34 | 49.3 | 33.6 | 76.0 | 1.8 | 6.3 | 8.2 | 4.9 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.4 | 21.6 |
| 2017-18 * | All Teams | 58 | 34 | 43.8 | 34.5 | 78.5 | 1.3 | 6.1 | 7.4 | 5.8 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 2.8 | 0.3 | 21.4 |
| 2017-18 * | LAKE | 33 | 35 | 44.1 | 34.2 | 78.5 | 1.4 | 6.6 | 7.9 | 5.4 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 3.0 | 0.3 | 22.6 |
| 2017-18 * | TED | 25 | 33 | 43.3 | 34.8 | 78.4 | 1.1 | 5.6 | 6.6 | 6.2 | 2.4 | 0.4 | 2.6 | 0.4 | 19.8 |
| 2018-19 | TED | 75 | 35 | 46.2 | 36.2 | 75.3 | 1.3 | 6.2 | 7.5 | 5.4 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 24.6 |
| 2019-20 | TED | 18 | 29 | 35.2 | 24.3 | 77.6 | 0.9 | 3.7 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 15.5 |
| 2020-21 * | All Teams | 46 | 26 | 42.3 | 34.1 | 74.4 | 0.8 | 4.1 | 4.9 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 11.0 |
| 2020-21 * | BRK | 26 | 22 | 49.2 | 38.3 | 78.2 | 1.1 | 3.6 | 4.7 | 2.4 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 10.0 |
| 2020-21 * | TED | 20 | 31 | 36.5 | 31.5 | 71.0 | 0.4 | 4.9 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 12.3 |
| 2021-22 | BRK | 56 | 17 | 42.5 | 26.2 | 72.4 | 1.1 | 3.0 | 4.1 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 6.4 |
| 2022-23 | BOS | 1 | 8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 50.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Total | 725 | 33 | 49.3 | 32.7 | 69.6 | 2.0 | 6.2 | 8.2 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 19.8 | |
