Blake Griffin
Last season Blake Griffin appeared to have disappeared from the basketball world in his first full season outside of the bright lights of Los Angeles – even though he arguably had the best season of his nine-year career.
The Detroit Pistons, led by Griffin, did everything they could to get into the playoffs last season, barely making it as the 8th seed in the East only to get swept by the Milwaukee Bucks with Griffin hobbled.
The Pistons are loaded with large contracts on a smaller market team with no path to contention and few notable young pieces. A slow start to this season could lead to a full-scale dismantling of the team starting with Blake.
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At 30-years-old, Griffin is the oldest player on this list and might be too old for some.
For a player known though with his athleticism who has suffered multiple injuries at such a young age, it is important to evolve your game as time goes on.
Fortunately Griffin has done that in a big way, showcasing it fully last season.
Just to illustrate this, last season Griffin attempted seven (7!!!) 3-point attempts per game – more than even Devin Booker.
The more impressive part is that he connected on them at over 36% – nearly a 4% higher clip than Booker.
All of the shooting came while averaging a career high 24.5 points a game, playing quality defense and dishing out over 5 assists on a team with limited offensive options. A trio of Griffin, Booker, and Ayton could fit well together and complement each other while creating one of the top offenses in the league.
One concern with Griffin is the remaining three-years and roughly 110 million dollars left on his contract.
This concern is less prevalent after his performance in 2018-19 and could help the Suns acquire Griffin at a lower cost in terms of traded assets if they choose to pursue him.
Weather it is to the Phoenix Suns or not, Blake Griffin could be a popular name showing up in trade talks during this coming season.