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Did Blake Griffin blow off Clippers’ owner Steve Ballmer before game? Griffin says no.

Blake Griffin

Detroit Pistons forward Blake Griffin sits on the bench in the closing minutes of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019, in Los Angeles. The Lakers won 113-100. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

AP

In the summer of 2017, the Clippers went all in to convince Blake Griffin to stay with them as a free agent, their pitch including a trip down the memory lane of Griffin’s life and a mock jersey retirement. It worked, Griffin re-signed with the Clippers on a max deal.

Eight months later, the Clippers traded Griffin to the Detroit Pistons.

Nobody could blame Griffin for being bitter about the trade and holding a grudge. When Griffin returned to Staples Center to take on the Clippers for the first time Saturday, did he blow off owner Steve Ballmer pregame?

After the game —
a Pistons win where Griffin dropped 44 — Griffin denied he blew off Ballmer. Via Ben Golliver of the Washington Post.

“For nine years now, as soon as I’m done with my pregame shooting, I make sure there’s a path and I take off running to the locker room,” Griffin said “I don’t stop running. A lot of you have seen me do that before. I don’t change that for anybody. To tweet out something like that, I thought was kind of bull----. That’s what it was. Plain and simple. It wasn’t anything planned. Every single game I’ve done this for how long.”


Having covered a lot of Griffin games with the Clippers, I will confirm he sprints to the locker room after every warmup.

Does that mean he didn’t blow off Ballmer? Can’t blame him if he did.