REPORT: Detroit Pistons and Blake Griffin Agree to Contract Buyout
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The Detroit Pistons and Blake Griffin have agreed to a contract buyout, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports. Griffin will become an unrestricted free agent.
https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1367882930383708168
Wojnarowski further reports that Griffin is yielding high interest from numerous contending teams and will make a decision soon.
https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1367883114899529730
The 31-year old forward struggled mightily in 20 games this season, posting a career-low average of 12.3 points per game while shooting under 37% from the field and just 31.5% from the 3-point line.
Marc Stein of the New York Times reports that the Lakers, Clippers, Heat, Warriors, and Nets have expressed interest in Griffin.
https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine/status/1367885382004568066
In 138 career games with Detroit, the six-time all-star posted averages of 20.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, and five assists per game. He posted one of, if not the best season of his career in the 2018-2019 season in Detroit, in which he returned to the All-Star Game for the first time since 2015. He led Detroit back into the playoffs that year as well, although the team was swept in four games by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
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The Pistons decided in February that they wanted to go younger, and both they and Griffin decided it would be best to part ways. With the likes of Jerami Grant, Sekou Doumbouya, and Saddiq Bey, Griffin was falling out of the fold as he struggled to perform on the court.
Wojnarowski reports that the two sides agreed to a reduction in his remaining salary, although the financials are not quite clear on that just yet. Griffin was owed 36.5 million this season and $39 million for the 2021-2022 campaign.
https://youtu.be/MV0YHFjG_LQ