Blake Griffin has never won an NBA title, but he thinks he has an excellent opportunity to do just that with the Brooklyn Nets during the upcoming 2021-22 season, and that’s the main reason that he re-signed with the team over the offseason.
“Yeah, I think so. I think so,” Griffin replied when asked if he thinks the Nets can win the title next season, via the New York Post. “Obviously there’s a lot of work to do, a lot of work to be done. Can’t take anything for granted. But I like our team. I like the guys we have, I like our coaching staff, I like everything we’ve put together. So, yeah, I believe in us.”
Griffin had other suitors in free agency, and he could have potentially found more money, or a larger role, elsewhere. But, he’s comfortable in Brooklyn, and at this point in his career, that’s what matters most.
“Yeah, there were [other suitors],” Griffin said. “But especially talking to guys … I had a conversation with Jeff [Green] and I talked to other guys who’ve been in different situations and not being in the same spot multiple years. It’s always — I don’t want to say a ‘guessing game,’ because you can get a pretty good feel for how teams are going to work — but you never know.
“This is a situation I was comfortable in, so a lot of those other offers didn’t necessarily [appeal], just going to make more money or going to a new spot for maybe a bigger role wasn’t really a thing. It’s a thing where I know this situation, I know what I can do with this team, I know my role with this team and we still left the season with sort of a bad taste in our mouths.”
The Nets were heavily favored to come out of the Eastern Conference last season, but their campaign was derailed by injuries to key contributors and ultimately they fell to the Milwaukee Bucks in seven games in the second round. As such, the feeling that there’s unfished business is shared among the players on the team.
“It was a no-brainer for me,” Griffin said of re-signing with Brooklyn. “That was a conversation we as a team felt like we obviously didn’t accomplish what we wanted. You can say injuries, but every team had injuries. So we feel like there’s definitely unfinished business. There’s something bigger that we want to achieve, and I still want to be a part of that.”
Despite the ultimate outcome, Griffin played well in the postseason for the Nets as he showed just how valuable he can still be to a contending team.
In addition to bringing back Griffin, the Nets also signed Kevin Durant to an extension, and James Harden and Kyrie Irving are both expected to do the same before the start of the season. As long as all of those guys are able to remain healthy — which obviously isn’t a guarantee — the Nets will have an excellent opportunity to win their first NBA title in 2022.
Courtesy: CBS Sports
