Why OKC Thunder Should Avoid Blake Griffin

It isn’t likely to begin with, but the Thunder need to stay away from Blake Griffin, as tempting as it may be.

With Chris Paul on his way to Houston, the Clippers appear to be moving in a new direction. Star forward Blake Griffin is an unrestricted free agent. Would he want to spend the final years of his prime on a rebuilding team? Maybe he’d like to be “the guy” again in Los Angeles. But perhaps he needs a change of scene and wants another shot at title contention.

One team Griffin has been linked to is the Oklahoma City Thunder. He grew up in OKC, and spent two years at the University of Oklahoma. There is a small chance Griffin could get nostalgic and want to come play for his hometown team.

From the Thunder’s perspective, the team obviously needs a second star. Griffin may be appealing, especially to Sooner fans. However, the fact of the matter remains that Griffin coming to Oklahoma City remains incredibly unlikely. And even if he wanted to come back, it just isn’t worth it for the Thunder to bring him in.

What would it take?

First of all, the Thunder don’t have the cap space to add Blake Griffin right away. They would most likely need to let Taj Gibson and Andre Roberson walk. They would also need to find a trade partner for Enes Kanter, and likely get next to nothing back in return. Even then, with Griffin commanding a max salary, the Thunder still wouldn’t be able to bring him in without being over the cap. This means that the Thunder would have to agree to a sign-and-trade with the Clippers.

For that to happen, Griffin would have to essentially threaten the Clippers and tell management he is either going to sign with a team like Miami, or trade him to the Thunder and get something back in return. The Clippers, obviously wanting something in return, would have a high asking price for the Thunder. This package could include Victor Oladipo, Domantas Sabonis, Terrance Ferguson, and a future first round pick. So when all is said and done, the Thunder will have essentially gutted half their roster, and most of their young, promising assets for one player.

Is it worth it?

The next question that needs to be addressed is whether or not doing all of this for Griffin is actually worth it. While the big man has put together a solid NBA career, his recent injury history would suggest otherwise. He’s had multiple quad and knee injuries over the past seven years that have slowly begun taking away his athleticism. This past year, Griffin hurt the plantar plate in his right big toe, causing him to miss the remainder of the postseason. Recent reports now suggest that this injury could keep Griffin out untill December. Griffin, who will be 29 next March, is entering the twilight of his peak years. His extensive accumulation of injuries is only accelerating the aging process.

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As stated, acquiring Blake Griffin would basically result in a massive roster overhaul that would require new pieces and new chemistry. Can a team really afford to do that when its second best player is going to miss more than the first month of the season? Probably not, which is what makes a Griffin sign-and-trade incredibly risky.

General Manager Sam Presti needs to figure out what his goal for this team is in the foreseeable future. Does this team want to “compete” against Golden State? If so, rolling the dice on Griffin may be worth a shot. But Presti has always valued continuity and internal development. Signing Griffin would deplete Oklahoma City’s pipeline and jeopardize the stability of the roster going forward.

Again, it cannot be stressed enough it is unlikely Griffin would want to come back to OKC. He clearly loves Los Angeles and all the marketing opportunities that come with it. Would he really want to throw all that away just to come home? Even so, the Thunder should be the ones to say, thanks but no thanks first.

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