Blake Griffin Said Chris Paul Left The Clippers ‘The Right Way’


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Blake Griffin may be the last Clipper standing in Los Angeles soon enough, but he doesn’t seem to have any hard feelings about the departure of Chris Paul.

The two may have been franchise cornerstones for the Clippers, who were facing a very uncertain offseason after LA fell short in the postseason once again. Griffin had a potential free agency looming, though he chose to stay in LA. Paul, however, took a sign-and-trade deal to Houston to become part of one of the most explosive offenses in basketball this season.

With DeAndre Jordan’s future up in the air, it could be a very big season of change for the Clippers. But when asked about how Paul left the Clippers, Griffin was glad the franchise handled it the right way.

Griffin sat down with The Undefeated‘s Marc J. Spears for a long interview about race, the Clippers and what happens next for Griffin’s career. Though he currently isn’t playing because of a concussion, Griffin did have a lot to say about Paul’s trade and how, unlike many recent NBA transactions, he left the team in a positive way.

I talked to him the morning before it came out. He called me and just kind of told me everything. Like I told him on the phone, I wished him the best and appreciated the years we had together. That situation was handled the right way. You see other guys and other teammates go separate ways with a bad taste in their mouth because it wasn’t handled the right way.

Griffin seems honest here, and it sounds like he truly did appreciate not only the way it was handled but how much Griffin meant to him while he was with the Clippers.

“We shared a lot of moments together. Some good. Some bad. Some just the mundane everyday sitting on the plane, sitting on the bus,” Griffin said. “When you share that much time with somebody, you have a connection. But now we’re in separate places and both moving forward.”

For Griffin, moving forward might mean being the lone superstar on the Clippers if DeAndre Jordan does indeed go elsewhere. But despite his injury troubles, Griffin does seem to be in a good place when it comes to his position with the Clippers. Maybe he knows the franchise has a plan to get him some help.

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