(Basketball news) Blake Griffin who recently turned 33, has joined the Boston Celtics on a one-year, fully-guaranteed contract according to Adrian Wojnarowski. Blake made 56 appearances and 24 as a starter for the Brooklyn Nets last season, averaging 6.4 points and 4.1 rebounds. He was abandoned by coach Steve Nash during the playoffs when he only played a mere total of 25 minutes in two games.

Griffin became a free agent this summer as the Boston Celtics signed him on a veteran minimum contract. Though he may no longer be the explosive big man who made his name for his dunking abilities as injuries took away most of his athleticism, Griffin can still be valuable as he can play as a qualified center in a small-ball squad. He has good size and power to tussle with monsters like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid, it is very important for a title contender in the Eastern Conference like the Celtics to be flexible in every situation. The Celtics also signed Italian forward Danilo Gallinari during the offseason to enhance their bench strength but now Gallinari will likely be ruled out for the 2022-23 season after tearing the ACL in his left knee during the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifier.

Griffin does not offer the same scoring ability of Gallinari who averaged 11.7 points and 38.1 percent of the 3-point range for the Atlanta Hawks last season. Griffin on the other hand only made 0.7 shots from the 3 point range at 26.2 percent per game during the 2021-22 campaign.. Considering that the team’s elite defensive center Robert Williams III also needs months to recover from his knee surgery, Griffin can go straight into the starting lineup or bench unit, without hurting the team's current spacing. He may not be able to finish as efficiently as Williams III under the rim, but Griffin is a much better passer who can shoulder some orchestrating plays.

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