The 9-7 Detroit Pistons are the East’s 5th seed through Friday’s games. Power forward Blake Griffin is leading the team in scoring at 25.3 points per game, and he’s second in rebounds at 10.4 per game, but surprisingly he’s leading the squad in assists, dishing 4.8 per contest. While that’s a very low assist average to lead an entire NBA team, it’s still impressive on Griffin’s part. For more on him, mostly on his transition from the Clippers to Pistons, here’s the LA Times:
Yes, he chose to sign a five-year contract worth more than $170 million to remain in Los Angeles with the Clippers. Yes, the Clippers balked less than eight months into the deal and sent him to the Pistons. Yes, there are things Griffin misses in Los Angeles. He wishes he was closer to his children on a full-time basis. He misses some Clippers fans and people in the organization.
But being in Detroit instead of playing for the Clippers, Griffin is fine with it.
“Yeah, I’m glad it happened,” Griffin told the Los Angeles Times. “I’m not saying I don’t miss certain people. There were some awesome fans that I got to know and I felt like I was very close with them. And there are some people you miss over there, but it was just time for a fresh start.
“I’m glad to be here.”
Griffin, who turns 30 in March, is really happy — it’s something everyone says when you ask about him. Detroit and the surrounding suburbs are more like his native Oklahoma than Los Angeles, so he’s more comfortable. Teammates say he’s thriving in a role of being the lead voice in the locker room. Staffers say he’s been terrific to deal with. Others love that he seems to know everyone in the organization by name. The mood swings that at times in Los Angeles could be volatile haven’t been an issue.
The Pistons seem good, but definitely not great, and will need more consistent play from guys other than Griffin and Andre Drummond if they want to raise their status as an actual East contender. Griffin, this season, is doing his part.
