Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer tried to talk to Blake Griffin before Griffin’s return game to Los Angeles on Saturday, and it didn’t go so well. Ballmer hung out by the sidelines while Griffin finished his pre-game shooting routine, and once he was done, went in for a handshake.
Did Blake Griffin sprint away from the Clippers owner Steve Ballmer on purpose?
Griffin didn’t stop his pregame routine, even for his former boss.
But Griffin SPRINTED right past him.
After the game, Griffin clarified on his actions, by saying he was following his usual routine.
Here’s what he said:
Griffin: As soon as Im done doing my pregame shooting, I make sure there’s a path and I take off to the locker room running and I don’t stop running. So a lot of you know that. A lot of you have been here for a long time and have seen me do that before. I don’t change that for anybody. To tweet out something like that was kinda bullshit because you know that. But that’s what it was plain and simple. It wasn’t anything planned. Every single game I’ve done this for I don’t know how long.
When asked if he’d shake Ballmer’s hand in another setting, he replied, “I’m not here to answer hypothetical questions to be honest.”
Griffin might not be over the Jan. 2018 trade that came six months after he signed a five-year, $171 million contract to stay in L.A. That signing followed an elaborate pitch from the Clippers that took Griffin through a maize at Staples Center, which ended with a simulation of what his jersey retirement would look like.
During the broadcast on Saturday afternoon, Clippers play-by-play announce Ralph Lawler said that Griffin even blew him off when the two teams played in Detroit after the trade last season.
All that promise from the franchise, only to ship him off to shed salary, had to burn for Griffin.
The Clippers played a tribute video for him, and Griffin waved to the crowd, but otherwise, he kept a stone face on throughout the game as he dominated the court for a 109-104 win.
He finished with 44 points on 23 shots with eight rebounds and five assists.
But nothing will be clear on the beef front until somebody speaks.
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