Blake Griffin Should Be On Lakers’ Radar

Given recent events, Blake Griffin could be put on the trade block, per a Fox Sports report.

Considering this is taking place around Hollywood, it’s hard to believe that a story line like this could even come to pass — but it’s here.

Now that Blake Griffin could be in some seriously hot water with the Los Angeles Clippers following a fight with a team employee, he could become a valuable trade asset for the Clippers with three weeks before the trade deadline for this season.

Despite not having Blake Griffin the starting lineup, Los Angeles has actually done just fine in the month since he was originally injured.

They haven’t lost their step or their swagger, and they don’t have time or energy to devote to fixing Griffin’s now off-the-court issues as it stands right now.

While this makes him a negative asset at the moment,

Doc Rivers has been able to really put some fire under his squad as of late and Griffin has no place to try and steal their thunder.

After all, isn’t he supposed to be part of the bigger picture and helping, not hurting, the team?

With this latest incident, what really comes into question is his heart, mindset, and attitude.

There’s no question that he’s one of the best players in the league when his focus, attention, and energy are in the right place – but to say that those things are in order at the moment would be misleading and misinformed.

Additionally, considering how much buzz is surrounding a potential trade of Griffin to elsewhere, even if it’s not the Lakers, it’s hard to think that the Clippers will be able to leave trade possibilities at no comment for much longer.

More from LA Sports Hub

• Lakers: 5 Players to Target Through Trades to make another championship run
• LA Chargers: Week 8 against Denver Broncos is a must-win
• LA Rams: Jared Goff wants to keep the Los Angeles title streak going
• Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles Clippers interested in Rajon Rondo
• LA Chargers: Justin Herbert wins AFC Rookie of the Month

From the Lakers’ perspective, they could really use someone like Blake Griffin on their team for several reasons.

First and foremost, he’d be able to start fresh in the same city while bringing his experience to the table; it’d be beneficial for Julius Randle and D’Angelo Russell, especially.

Second, Byron Scott is in need of more veterans on his team if he wants to stay with the idea of rebuilding the franchise from the ground up.

While there’s no need or possibility of re-branding the Lakers, there’s plenty of room for revival.

Getting Griffin out of an environment where he’s no longer the number one priority would benefit more than just his new team — and it’s a guarantee he’s thought about how his new portrayal will affect him on and off the hardwood.

Griffin is no villain — by all means, he’s human — but sometimes the smallest things could get to guys with his style and approach to the game.

SB Nation’s blog tailored to the Celtics has a report up right now on how Boston would benefit from having Griffin around — and if a currently better Celtics team is looking to invest in him, you can only imagine the effort that the Lakers are ready to put forward.

To make matters more interesting, trading Blake Griffin was actually a scenario where both Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless actually agreed on something.

Tell me the last time that happened peacefully.

Smith and Bayless’ program First Take also decided to poll their Twitter audience about the situation that Griffin finds himself in, and the numbers should speak for themselves:

Rest assured that the Clippers haven’t lost faith in their big man just yet, but it could get to that point if his relationship with the team, particularly the front office, doesn’t improve immediately or in the very near future.

The irony in all of this is that Griffin’s role in luring DeAndre Jordan out of an off-season signing with the Dallas Mavericks may come back to bite him.

Since deciding to return to Los Angeles, Jordan has been half as productive when it comes to scoring compared to Griffin’s efforts thus far.

Jordan has played over a dozen more games than Griffin, but has only put up 11 points on average to Griffin’s 23.

Even though he hasn’t come through on the scoring end, Jordan gives them more stability down low when they need it — something Griffin cannot provide at this point in time.

Most of that scoring ground has been made up by Chris Paul and J.J. Redick, so it’s hard to argue that Griffin isn’t anything other than a distraction at the moment.

Instead of letting Griffin’s expected return to action in 4-6 weeks hurt more than help, the best option for the Clippers moving forward would be to dish him while they still can.

Should they opt to keep him around and the trade deadline passes, the Clippers could find themselves to be their own worst enemy still.

Bottom Line: If Blake Griffin is headed out, it’s what’s best for business.

All of the momentum, star power, and determination it takes to be a contender in the Western Conference — then comes Griffin crashing in to take the wind out of the rest of guys.

Thankfully this incident isn’t something that affects whether Griffin will ever play again — it’d obviously take something much more serious in order for it to be a hindrance of that nature.

But it could easily be the nail in the coffin when it comes to his days in Los Angeles.

Next: Lakers vs Bulls Preview And Prediction

In red, white, and blue, at least.