Before the start of the new season, the Boston Celtics are unlikely to re-sign Blake Griffin. The Celtics would ‘certainly welcome a return,’ according to a Boston Globe article by Adam Himmelsbach, but Griffin is debating his options.
“The Celtics would likely welcome a return by veteran big man Blake Griffin, who played well last year and was a strong locker room presence, but for now, that appears unlikely as Griffin considers his future,” Himmelsbach said.
Griffin, 34, isn’t the physically gifted high flyer who ruled the NBA in his early years. Instead, the seasoned big man has evolved into a floor spacing role player who has more influence off the court than on it.
Griffin played in 41 regular-season games for the Celtics last year, averaging 4.1 points and 3.8 rebounds each time.
Griffin is probably seeking for a small role on a competitive team at this point in his career, similar to the roles he played with the Brooklyn Nets and Boston last season.
Griffin’s immediate options are, however, running out as teams start to finalize their rosters in advance of training camp. The 15th roster place for Boston won’t be filled right away.
Brad Stevens has started recent seasons with the final roster place unfilled to give his team flexibility. Boston, however, is in need of another big man.
All three of the rotation’s starting bigs have injury concerns.
Nevertheless, Griffin might be thinking about retiring after a terrific career. After all, the previous star player for the Clippers has changed from being a prominent contributor to the offense to a secondary player.
Griffin must make some difficult choices, but Boston is probably his best option if he wants to capture a title.
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