Blake Griffin retires after several attempts from Boston Celtics to bring him back for one last ride
It's official: Blake Griffin announces his retirement after 13 seasons in the NBA.
Blake Griffin has announced his retirement on April 16th, 2024 after 13 NBA seasons; his final year, the 2022-23 campaign, being with the Boston Celtics.
Despite efforts from the Cs to bring him back, Griffin decided to call it a career following the 2023-24 regular season instead.
The Oklahoma City native took his message to X (formerly Twitter) to share a couple of words with his fans.
Fin pic.twitter.com/OCFAuAt0sl
— Blake Griffin (@blakegriffin23) April 16, 2024
Griffin was the No. 1 overall draft pick back in 2009 after spending two seasons in college playing for the University of Oklahoma, where he averaged 19 points, 12 rebounds, and two assists, with a 62% conversion rate from the field. The Los Angeles Clippers elected to bring him aboard over big-time players like James Harden (picked third) and Steph Curry (picked seventh).
Stepping onto the hardwood did not come until the 2010-2011 regular season for Griffin due to surgery on his left kneecap which led to missing what should have been his rookie year. However, fast-forward to the future and he earned the NBA Rookie of the Year award, Griffin was named the Slam Dunk winner, and earned an All-Star appearance where he played alongside some of the game's greatest players in Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tim Duncan.
The 2018–2019 season, in which Griffin starred for the Detroit Pistons, was by far his best considering that he accumulated 25 points and eight rebounds to go along with five assists. His performance that go-around was highlighted by the 43-point outing against the Miami Heat, in addition to the 15 rebounds and six assists he handed out.
Arguably the main storyline of Griffin's NBA career has to be during the "Lob City" era with the Clippers. Teaming up with Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan led to some of the craziest clips the NBA community has ever seen.
Below is a one-hour video of the Clippers demolishing their opponents around the rim. Check it out!
Another valuable piece of the NBA's modern era is hanging up his jersey and will surely not be forgotten.
On behalf of the entire NBA community, thank you, Blake Griffin.