Former NBA All-Star Blake Griffin’s tenure with the Pistons is apparently coming to an abrupt end. On Monday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski revealed that the two parties are separating before the deadline for next month. Griffin’s declining production and high salaries could result in a complicated, yet possible buyout.
If Griffin does make the buyout market, the Trail Blazers should be at the top of the list of possible suitors. Circling back to Griffin would fit in with a pattern adopted by Neil Olshey, president of basketball operations, over the past few years. It’s serious that Olshey’s has become a distinctive move, apart from tackling the talent of the second round and bidding against himself when he re-signs the role players.
Olshey uses this tactic not once, but twice in the off-season of 2019. When the Blazers acquired Hassan Whiteside in a four-team deal before the 2019-20 season, Olshey pointed it out his previous interest in the towering center. too light.
“The acquisition of Hassan is an impact on our list,” Olshey said. ‘He’s an elite shot blocker, rebounder and paint present on both sides of the floor. We have pursued Hassan at various times in his career in various ways and are delighted to add him to our organization. ”
A few weeks later, Olshey returns to the same line of thinking after Pau Gasol signed a one-year deal with the Blazers.
“We are clearly in ecstasy to add Pau to our team, a player with championship experience for a team with high expectations for the coming season,” said Neil Olshey, president of basketball operations. ‘As you all know, he’s a player we aggressively pursued in free agencies a few years ago. We are ecstatic to join the Trail Blazers and become a core part of our roster going forward. ”
The most important example of this approach is linked to the current Blazers center Enes Kanter. The summary of Portland’s previous interest in Kanter was one of the first remarks Olshey made after signing the former Knicks pivot with the Blazers in the middle of the 2018-19 season.
A pursuit of Griffin in the buyout market is one of the biggest setbacks in Olshey’s career. Their relationship spans a decade – all the way back to their time together with the Clippers. Olshey was the assistant general manager of Clippers when Griffin was selected as first place in the NBA draft in 2009. Shortly after Griffin’s arrival in Los Angeles, Olshey was tasked with drawing up the rosters that the former Oklahoma star surrounded it.
Clearly, Griffin is entering a new, less mobile era of his NBA career. But his name recognition and former relationship with Olshey should make him a clear target for the Blazers as he enters the buyout market. For Griffin, the goodwill that the Blazers have built up with Carmelo Anthony could be a starting point for shared interest. Plus, I doubt there are any hard feelings about the game in 2017.