Blake Griffin makes debut with Nets, throws down first dunk since 2019
Blake Griffin #BlakeGriffin
Blake Griffin officially made his debut with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night, and did something he hasn’t done since 2019.
Griffin threw down a dunk.
Now on the surface, that sounds ridiculous. The six-time All-Star is a former Slam Dunk Contest winner, after all.
But with the COVID-19 pandemic cutting last season short, and the Detroit Pistons not being invited into the NBA bubble, Griffin’s last dunk actually came 25 games ago back on Dec. 12, 2019.
And while he didn’t see the court much on Sunday night in their 113-106 win against the Washington Wizards — he played just 15 minutes — Griffin finally got his dunk just seconds into the fourth quarter.
“I knew once it happened, I know it would be a thing,” Griffin said of the dunk, via ESPN’s Malika Andrews. “It felt good to get that out of the way and move on.”
Griffin finished the night with just two points and two rebounds while shooting 1-of-2 from the field. The 32-year-old, who spent the last three seasons with the Pistons, agreed to a buyout with Detroit earlier this month and quickly signed with the Nets.
As it’s been over a month since he actually played in a game, however, Griffin knew he wasn’t going to see much action on Sunday night.
“Nobody sits out for a month and then comes back and plays right away,” Griffin said, via ESPN. “So, I just want to be smart and listen to the people that know what they’re talking about and make sure I give myself the best opportunity to come in and contribute and be healthy for the playoffs and beyond.”
With the Nets in the position they are — just half of a game out of first place in the Eastern Conference — Griffin knows there isn’t any need for him to rush into things in Brooklyn.
He sounds, at least for now, more than content to take his time.
“I think I can play more than 15 [minutes] for sure,” Griffin said, via the New York Daily News’ Kristian Winfield. “I think we’re just being really smart about it, you know, when there’s no need to play 30 minutes right away.”
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