Clippers Blake Griffin Opts out of contract

Mainstreet

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The rumor is that he wants out and the Spurs are trying to move him to clear space to pursue free agents like Chris Paul. We could potentially get him in a salary dump type of move. Having Aldridge and his old max salary for at most 2 years vs Millsap or Griffin at the new max four 4 years is preferable.

Then we play Aldridge at center. ;)

This may be the reason he wants out of San Antonio. He does not like to play center. This was the Suns attraction for him with Tyson Chandler playing center.
 

SirStefan32

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Have you ever been to San Antonio?

Graduated High School there. Not sure how that's relevant, though. Spurs are the single best organization in the NBA. Players take pay cuts to play there. He signed there and now wants out- there is something wrong with him.
 

SirStefan32

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There's a difference in the mediocrity of the final Nash years that had no hope for the future vs the mediocrity that adding a player like Griffin would bring to our now bright future.

That's an excellent point. Final Nash years were much different than what it would look like now. We did not have kids like Booker, Chriss, Jackson, and Warren. Hell, we didn't even have kids like Ulis and Williams. While I am not in favor of signing or trading for LMA or Blake specifically, I would be just fine with bringing in a good player to get into the playoffs. Kids need to learn how to win, and then need to experience the post-season.
 

devilalum

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Graduated High School there. Not sure how that's relevant, though. Spurs are the single best organization in the NBA. Players take pay cuts to play there. He signed there and now wants out- there is something wrong with him.

Yes, the Spurs are a successful organization but the city is not the most glamorous location in the NBA. It's not for everybody.
 

mjb21aztd

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Yea after rethinking would prob pass on blake sure he is a great player but wpuld rather pay big money to a player who is healthy in the playoffs.

Could the suns make a run at chris paul and trade bledsoe?
 

mojorizen7

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OK. This may sound strange, but I would rather have Chris Paul than Blake
That's not strange at all. I fully agree with you. Adding Griffin or these other names being thrown out there wouldn't accomplish much, while adding a veteran distributor who can still defend would actually be a smart move.
 

chickenhead

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Yes, the Spurs are a successful organization but the city is not the most glamorous location in the NBA. It's not for everybody.

In this case, though, LMA signed there. It's not like he was drafted and just never liked it. Plus he would have played there many times in the western conference.

Doesn't mean you're right. It just seems more like he hasn't bought into the SA organization and culture ultimately.
 

RON_IN_OC

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If we are saying no to Griffin because of health concerns, when are we shipping Bledsoe out? Maybe he has flamed out in the playoffs, but at least he's got playoff experience. That whole team has crapped the post season bed forever. The Suns should, at the very least, do their due diligence...IMO. They need to find out if he can be dominant in the post season, or if they think he's the Barry Bonds of the NBA.
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Have they decided on Len? Probably bring in a vet SG or PF to teach the youngsters. A Vet that will not play.
 

devilalum

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In this case, though, LMA signed there. It's not like he was drafted and just never liked it. Plus he would have played there many times in the western conference.

Doesn't mean you're right. It just seems more like he hasn't bought into the SA organization and culture ultimately.


My guess is that he was drawn in by the culture of success which is perfectly reasonable. I'm sure there are lots of players that could care less that the Spurs are in SA. They just want to play for Pop and win. Sometimes players are also interested in other things a city may have to offer. weather, political climate, culture, market size, endorsement potential, schools, family environment.....
 

devilalum

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If we are saying no to Griffin because of health concerns, when are we shipping Bledsoe out? Maybe he has flamed out in the playoffs, but at least he's got playoff experience. That whole team has crapped the post season bed forever. The Suns should, at the very least, do their due diligence...IMO. They need to find out if he can be dominant in the post season, or if they think he's the Barry Bonds of the NBA.
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Griffin is a force of nature but he's like a Ferrari, sure it's fast when it's running but it spends half the time in the shop.
 

Cheesebeef

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Griffin is a force of nature but he's like a Ferrari, sure it's fast when it's running but it spends half the time in the shop.

Great analogy for who he used to be, but after watching him the last couple years living in LA, not even sure you can tag him Ferrari level at this point, even when healthy.
 

JCSunsfan

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Have they decided on Len? Probably bring in a vet SG or PF to teach the youngsters. A Vet that will not play.
I think this is completely unnecessary unless they get rid of other vets that do not play like Barbs or Dudley.

I really don't see the point in adding free agents this year. I am only really interested in what happens with Len and Sauce and whether BK gets traded.
 

Mainstreet

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Have they decided on Len? Probably bring in a vet SG or PF to teach the youngsters. A Vet that will not play.

This is interesting because I have not heard anything about Len from the Suns. Teams that want to keep their free agents generally talk a lot about keeping them. The silence is deafening.
 

JCSunsfan

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Honestly. If the Knicks are still at odds with Porzingis, I would like to work on that. I would love to get Porzingis without giving up Booker or Jackson.

But the opportunity is probably gone.
 

GatorAZ

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Honestly. If the Knicks are still at odds with Porzingis, I would like to work on that. I would love to get Porzingis without giving up Booker or Jackson.

But the opportunity is probably gone.

Phil was just sending him a message. By all accounts their asking prices were astronomical.
 

Cheesebeef

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I feel like signing Griffin would be akin to the Cardinals signing Edge back in the day. BIG name guy... who had injuries, wasn't the same player and ultimately will hold the team back looking to establish the PF position (like Edge did when we passed on AP... man, that move still has me steaming. AP on that team with Kurt, Fitz, Boldin, Breaston?! That would have been better than the Greatest Show On Turf!!!)
 

Mainstreet

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I feel like signing Griffin would be akin to the Cardinals signing Edge back in the day. BIG name guy... who had injuries, wasn't the same player and ultimately will hold the team back looking to establish the PF position (like Edge did when we passed on AP... man, that move still has me steaming. AP on that team with Kurt, Fitz, Boldin, Breaston?! That would have been better than the Greatest Show On Turf!!!)

The alternative may be the Suns paying Millsap big dollars. :shrug:

I think the Suns are going to add some veteran to their roster who will command big dollars, however, I'm not sure they need too.
 

Cheesebeef

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The alternative may be the Suns paying Millsap big dollars. :shrug:

I think the Suns are going to add some veteran to their roster who will command big dollars, however, I'm not sure they need too.

they really don't. Don't take time away from the youngsters, IMO. Milsap ain't moving the needle for this team and Chriss needs that time on the court.
 

Hoop Head

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The only free agent I'm interested in is Chris Paul, even then it depends on the price. Maybe if he was interested in coming here we could work out a sign and trade for Bledsoe. If we could bring in Paul then maybe explore the option of Griffin.

We'd have to have a deal in place to move Bledsoe if we brought Paul in because I can't see Bledsoe being ok being his backup again. I know Paul is older but they play different styles and Paul is a pass first PG who would make Booker, Chriss, Warren, and Jackson better. I can see Paul being effective for about as long as Bledsoe is, which should be another 3-4 years. Unlike Bledsoe, Paul doesn't rely on his athleticism as much.

I highly doubt Paul would want to come here though, he's going to be courted by a number of contenders and LA says they want to keep him. LA can offer the most money and teams like San Antonio offer him the best chance at a title. Without Paul, I'm not sure how good Griffin can be. We'd definitely be one of the most hated teams in the league with Griffin, Jackson, and Booker. They all play with chips on their shoulders and talk a bunch of trash. I'm not against a team like that but I'm not sure we'd want to add Griffin who is more of a talker and less of the type of player who backs it up.
 

Hoop Head

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You can compare his time missed with Bledsoe but they have different injuries, despite both having knee issues, Bledsoe hasn't suffered from the same injuries over and over. Griffin had microfracture surgery before his rookie year. He's played 7 seasons since then but we saw firsthand with Amare what microfracture does. Him and Amare are similar in that they rely on their athleticism to produce. Blake is a better shooter than Amare was but he still relies on his speed and leaping ability for the majority of his offense. It's about time that Griffin starts falling off, Amare played 6 seasons after his microfracture before he started coming apart. Blake had his earlier than Amare but they say that's a procedure that needs to be done every 7-10 years.

Not just in regards to his knees and microfracture though, it'll be interesting to see what sort of player he is without Chris Paul setting him up offensively and DeAndre Jordan covering for him on the glass and as a rim protecter, guarding the opposing teams best big. There are too many question marks surrounding him to throw max money his way, IMO. Especially because it's not a matter of if he'll get injured again but when.
 
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JCSunsfan

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no to Blake. Let someone else overpay him and regret it.
 

ASUCHRIS

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I feel like signing Griffin would be akin to the Cardinals signing Edge back in the day. BIG name guy... who had injuries, wasn't the same player and ultimately will hold the team back looking to establish the PF position (like Edge did when we passed on AP... man, that move still has me steaming. AP on that team with Kurt, Fitz, Boldin, Breaston?! That would have been better than the Greatest Show On Turf!!!)

Not sure I see the Edge comparison - Edge was quite clearly past his prime, while Griffin is only 28.

Read this article - https://theringer.com/2017-nba-free-agency-blake-griffin-point-guard-eeae6cd3b18d

Blake won't be throwing down monster dunks with the frequency he did in the past, but his game has matured quite a bit. I'm not saying that he's going to take us to a championship, but I do believe his addition would make us a potential playoff team. (provided the docs/trainers give the ok)
 
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