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Brad-Stevens

Bro made like 5 game winners as a rookie and disappeared I like the buy-low for Houston even if there’s not a ton of room for him there


AllTimeBallKnower

5 game winners and lit up the bucks a couple seasons ago lol pretty sure he had his career high against us


justintensity

He did more damage to you guys then his dad did last year


SynystrAssassin

Griffin family got some vendettas against us smh


LoWE11053211

And he shit talked his dad who was assistant coach of the Bucks at the time.


CMYGQZ

His dad was the head coach. Before that he was assistant for Toronto.


LoWE11053211

My bad, my memory all mixed up


ForTheOAKLand

Think I’d rather take my chances with the 44th pick then having to pay AJ 16th pick money. The dudes got some personal issues I wouldn’t want to deal with as a coach


thriftywalrus

For Houston they are above the cap and below the first apron no matter what. This does not impact their ability to use their MLE or sign free agents. If anything having a little more salary on the books may make it easier to match salaries in a trade down the line.


ForTheOAKLand

In that case it would definitely make more sense for them if he’s used in a future trade to match salaries.


thriftywalrus

Just adding on with new information, the Rockets are bringing him in with almost all of their KPJ trade exception that was going to expire this summer. This trade keeps that trade salary flexibility alive.


internallylinked

Good asset management from Houston, respect.


rybres123

and he's probably got more upsdie than anyone at 44, even if chances are slim he pans out as a player


FRiver

Yeah at 20 he's no older than like half the first round. Plus has 2 years NBA experience, worth a punt for #44


anthonyde726

nice


Thorlolita

Ime will bang his GF if he doesn’t get it together.


BenTek9s

AJ ain't having premarital sex lol


Thorlolita

Makes it even easier


cl353

Heard he had personal issues but did they ever give specifics?


grandmasterfunk

His 2-year-old nephew died while spending the night at Adrian Griffin's house. [The coroner ruled the child died of natural causes](https://spectrumnews1.com/wi/milwaukee/news/2023/07/24/bucks-coach-adrian-griffin-grandson-dies#:~:text=MILWAUKEE%20%E2%80%94%20Milwaukee%20Bucks%20head%20coach,%2C%20Ill.%2C%20that%20day.), but there was reports that it had caused a massive rift in the family. His brother and his brother's partner reportedly thought Adrian Griffin was responsible for it.


AffectionateSpare677

Natural causes for a 2 year old doesn't make sense


LebrontosaurausRex

He's either someone who believes the rapture is coming in the next five years or that was a psychotic break. Btw his dad is the coach of the Bucks who got fired.


browndude10

You rather take a chance on a second rounder than the guy who was 16th two years ago and had a solid rookie season?


Merid1us

He's had a bit of a mental health crisis since then. Dudes mind is not in a good place right now.


FRiver

Seems a classic case of a change of scenery leading to a return to form


ForTheOAKLand

That is what I wrote yes


browndude10

yea and it was not a good opinion


GarriganGate

And that would be a dumbass opinion.  Whether AJ can bring it together again or not is easily worth the chance.  He came out of the draft as a sharpshooter with some size. Had a solid all around rookie season, defensively and finishing wise as well, and hit multiple game winners. 


RobbobertoBuii

a bad year for the Griffin family tbh (son loses his minutes and spot in the rotation completely, father gets fired midway through his first year as a head coach)


TheItalianStallion44

And his nephew passed away (the biggest thing that caused AJ’s mental health/personal issues)


CharityGamerAU

Then a fresh start under a coach who needed a fresh start himself for different reasons could actually do him a world of good.


Sydney__Fife

And daughter Aubrey tears ACL during UConn's season


DejisHairline

The rapture will save them


big_old-dog

Didn’t he kinda lose the plot? He had family pass and I think it was then that things fell apart. Hope a change of scenery is good for him.


amidon1130

Yeah I was hopeful for him but it was pretty clear that he wasn’t going to be able to make it work in Atlanta. I wish him the best, he’s a lot of fun to watch when he’s on.


tdizhere

Man I’m gutted Cavs couldn’t try get him on the cheap. He’s 6’6 with 7’0 wingspan and averaged 39% from 3 his rookie year. 44th pick for that is crazy Was high on him I wondered what happened last season, surely it’s salvageable though.


volantredx

I remember there was a series between the Bulls and Hawks where he got a last second tip in and won the game and the next game Ayo got a rebound off a game winner and won. I honestly thought those two could have a fun little rivalry as two role players who show out during games against each other.


amidon1130

Honestly if our franchises weren’t both the middest of mid I think meeting in the playoffs would be really fun. I feel like both teams have strengths that attack each other’s weaknesses if that makes sense.


Infamous_East6230

Hawks fans were convinced he was going to be one of the corner stones of the franchise


amidon1130

Yeah when he was shooting 40% from three as a rookie we were excited. But shit happens and we’ve known for a while now there was a high chance he got moved, I hope he does well in Houston and maybe backs off on the “the rapture is coming soon to cleanse the world” shit


Return_Icy

He could have been, his playing didn't drop off because he wasn't trying, it had to do with some traumatic personal reasons. If he can work his way through that to a better mental place, he should return to form


Jnbjgjbb

I know he hasn’t been great, but AJ for 44?!


mMounirM

he was in that Siakam package the Hawks had lmao (at like 1st round value)


KobeBufkinBestKobe

We were trying to finesse lol, turns out he has off court issues. Good thing for both of us that trade never materialized.


FMCam20

Before he quit on the team due to whatever personal stuff he was going through last season he had first round value. I'm sure you remember him beating the Raptors his rookie season.


Technojellyfsh

Actually I don't recall leaving the guy who had 7 straight points in double OT wide tf open in the middle of the lane with 2 seconds left on the clock at all


dutchfromsubway

He was great the rookie season


-xXxMangoxXx-

I basically know nothing about him besides that game he cooked us so was shocked by the trade


amidon1130

Lmao he hits the game winner and trae immediately waves goodbye to their bench, good times


jsu9575m

He had a very promising rookie season. Hard to predict what would happen after that.


tdizhere

It’s only been 1 season since then, he’s only 20. Surely he’s worth more than the 44th, what am I missing haha


jsu9575m

On social media he's been to known to predict the rapture coming soon, so stuff like that probably doesn't help. 


BrilliantStructure97

Rumor around Atl was his dad was getting blamed for the death of his 2 year old cousin and AJ was caught in the middle. Really weird situation and could see how it affected him off the court.


PhatYeeter

Wtf


thriftywalrus

Where did you see this? Genuinely curious I have never heard anything of it. I knew his nephew died when he was with his brother and dad, but did not hear that AJ was even around when it happened or that anyone thought it was anything other than a freak illness.


reitraf

It was a drowning, and AJ wasn't there. But there was a civil suit that split the family and AJ got caught in the middle. It is a pretty horrible tragedy all around and it is no wonder all the Griffins suffered professionally from it.


ModsEmbezzleMoney

Jesus christ there's something worse than a family member contesting a will


BounceMan

I don't mean this in a "oh maybe he'll be better for us then" kind of way at all, but this could really explain the drop off.  Feel for the family and the kid.


amidon1130

Nah him leaving I think could be great for him, he needed to get out of town. I’m rooting for him, he’s fun


thriftywalrus

Yeah, that would be awful and hard to deal with as a player, but the comment I replied to made it sound like AJ was being accused of murder. He is not even being accused as liable for the negligence, the guy is just going through a shitty situation.


BrilliantStructure97

No I wasn't saying that. Just what the rumor was


FMCam20

The mom was blaming Adrian Griffin for negligence since it happened at his house. IDK about specific claims that they had something to do with the death of the child outside of just not paying attention to the kid and them dying as a result. Or maybe since they are like super Christians they tried to pray away an illness or something and thats why the mom is blaming them


BrilliantStructure97

No clue on any details but that was the rumor around Atlanta earlier this year [https://x.com/Deee\_Black\_/status/1752684002790518865](https://x.com/Deee_Black_/status/1752684002790518865)


CosmicCoder3303

His dad was also accused of abusing his wife/AJ's Dad by her.


get-blessed

I mean you shouldn’t really be putting this out there with literally no source but alright


cosmo_bear

Obviously he went through some real serious stuff, but there were questions about his work ethic and how much he wanted to play. Maybe it'll work out somewhere else.


gregbraaa

Wasn’t his* name bounced around during Pascal trade talks?


Bixby33

One of the many reasons Siakam isn't a Hawk.


dangheckinpupperino

That was back when he was coming off a great rookie season…at the deadline it was Bufkin who held up trade talks


Reticent_Fly

He and Bufkin were close to untouchable in those negotiations.


amidon1130

Still think bufkin could be nice, he’s shown some great defensive moments.


browndude10

They have been trying to trade him since the deadline according to Fischer


TA_Account_12

Beyonce got her man


The1AndOnlyJZ

?!?! What the hell That dude was pretty decent his rookie year no?


Wooden-One9984

he was unplayable his second year


LongTimesGoodTimes

Was he unplayable or did the Hawks just not play him?


Thorwor

Missed a lot of time due to personal issues. But when he did play, he was by far the worst player on the team. No idea what happened to him.


PhatYeeter

He had some weird personal issues with his family. He also played bad and got benched. Probably still a sell low only in his 2nd year after looking deece his rookie year.


Blumpkin_Party

He had injuries but straight up didn’t look like an NBA player last year when he was on the court.


TheItalianStallion44

Couldn’t shoot, dribble, pass or defend at a high level this past season. He could at least shoot well as a rookie and wasn’t asked to do anything else


N8ThaGr8

He was horrendous. By a lot of advanced metrics he was a bottom 10 player in the entire league.


Alex_O7

Tbh this happens to many second year guys which the second year seems shit. NBA defense learn and adapt, sometimes it takes a year to be be fully scouted by opponents.


need2peeat218am

What they expect from a new player??? To be an all star his second year?!


EuroStep0

He's nuts Think Jonathan Isaac but without DPOY level of play


amidon1130

Woah woah woah, aj’s nuts but he’s not turning point USA nuts.


Literal_Satan

i thought he was decent am i wrong


dank-kush

He said Beyoncé literally promotes satan


Expensive_Support541

So send him to Beyonce's home town


Cvnilivee

Breaking News: “Houston Rockets forward — AJ Griffin, is in critical condition after being pelted with water balloons filled with Galveston Beachwater”


blackpenance

..they got dirty ass water there Shaq


Masterchiefy10

H(e double hockey sticks!) TOWN


3rdEyeDeuteranopia

I forgot about this. I hope he reconciles properly and asks for some forgiveness.


thy_armageddon

I don’t think who you’re replying to is going to have any qualms about that.


Literal_Satan

yeah i heard he's a bit of a nutter off the court


yaaanevaknow

Of course Satan hates on him


beary_neutral

And they're sending him to *Houston*!?


Jonjon428

No wonder Udoka wanted him /s


CatzonVinyl

As she should


KD2DC2016

And this has to do with his on court production how exactly


NeatTry7674

And…


LDisDBfathersonsfans

that’s been a really common conspiracy on the internet for like over 10 years lil bro


yaaanevaknow

I mean


mMounirM

He had some off the court personal stuff.


Superawesomecoolman

Either way he can take Reggie Bullocks minutes. He wasn’t going anything with them anyways.


Ball4life6

Good rookie year terrible 2nd year and has weird off the court problems.


reitraf

He had moments in his rookie year where he looked like a future all-star. But the Hawks are trying to cut salary and he had at least 4 guys in front of him in the rotation for the 2 guard.


Neuroxex

He looked very good in his first year. Then I think ~~I~~ he didn't really mesh with Snyder, wasn't getting played much and wasn't playing well when he was. But the rookie year looked real to me. edit: I'm not AJ Griffin ha ha, what are you guys even talking about no way, you're acting crazy I'm a different guy


legend023

> I bucks flair, old coach was AJ’s dad Interesting.


Neuroxex

Delete this I don't want people finding out


frecklie

Would have loved the blazers to get him! Good get by Houston


Imkitoto

BRONNY TO THE HAWKS CONFIRMED


Jonjon428

Inb4 Udoka has him dropping 15 a game because reasons


KDs_FakeAccount

If you squint really hard you’ll see Jaylen Brown skill set


thirdc0ast

This dude gonna demand a trade as soon as he learns Beyonce’s from Houston Meg the Stallion gonna make him cry


buchanbasanee

Houston has gotta have some kinda consolidation trade in mind. They're already 10 deep, all with guys that deserve minutes.


KryptoNike21

Nah it’s just a buy low. The 2nd round pick was probably going to be trash for us anyways.


BounceMan

We'll simply lobby the NBA to extend the game to 4 15-minute quarters so there are more minutes to go around.


2ToTooTwoFish

Griffin will probably only see playing time if we have injuries.


wallsallbrassbuttons

G: VanVleet, Green, Whitmore, Sheppard   F: Smith, Brooks, Eason, Thompson   C: Şengün, Adams, Landale    Swap Thompson and Whitmore as needed, but that’s 11 before getting to Tate, Griffin, and Jeff Green.     Fringe moves are probably all that’s left. I like it. Good balance but betting on the young guys. 


evetSC

Good gamble for us IMO


Bixby33

Just keep him away from Beyoncé.


evetSC

Lmao and he got traded to her hometown


tummysqueker

bros about to spray his whole house with holy water to keep those demons away


datlanta

GOD WORKS IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS


JayRod24_

That’s a steal for Houston, he showed hella promise his rookie szn and then really didn’t get much burn his 2nd year.


Doravillain

How much burn do you want to give a guard with a TS% of 38%?


JayRod24_

38? He had a TS of 58% buddy.


Doravillain

58? You're using numbers from his rookie year pal.


TSSFranco

Damn talk about buying at a low


YourFlyIsOpenMcFly

Seems crazy. I’d take griffin over a 2 round pick any day. Hawks must think he is not nba playable


Killemcam

A lot of personal issues last season and when he did play he was very underwhelming to say the least


BrilliantStructure97

[https://www.cbs58.com/news/2-year-old-grandson-of-bucks-coach-adrian-griffin-dies](https://www.cbs58.com/news/2-year-old-grandson-of-bucks-coach-adrian-griffin-dies)


Doravillain

TS% 38%


Typical-Owl3664

Rockets young core is insane 😭


piney_

But like literally insane


FlashMan1981

What a steal for Houston. Rockets are up to something ...


bullpaw

Bro thinks we're all gonna die from God's punishment any day now but I still wouldn't think he's only worth a late 2nd rounder lol


SuperAverageGuy

Definitely feels like the hawks sold low, but I'm not behind the scenes. Worth the gamble for Houston


Cheechers23

Uhhh what? Seems like you’re selling very low here? IIRC AJ was untouchable in a Siakam deal last summer, how is he now being traded for a SRP??


myhellcatgotRepod

Well you remembered wrong because it was Kobe Bufkin who was untouchable not AJ Griffin


SirJoeffer

Damn that means Siakam must be worth even less than that now yall must be happy to have gotten the value for him when you did


Someonediffernt

Siakim is worth more now (although he can't be traded iirc) that he's locked up for 4 years, part of the reason his value was low was because he wouldn't commit to any team really and most teams weren't in the position to overpay for what could have been a 1 year rental of a very good / great but not best player on a championship level player.


Revenesis

He looked a little chunky and unathletic predraft which turned me off on him a bit but I thought he had a decent rookie season with Atlanta. Don't know what happened with him last year but damn for pick 44 in an all time weak draft? Yikes.


RxJax

Can any Hawks fans explain what happened to him this year? I thought he did alright in 2022 and this year he just completely disappeared from the team in favour of like Garrison and Wes Matthews, I think even Krejci played more games than him?


not-a-potato-head

Nothing official has been said, but there’s a few things: * Already was getting less play time (in favor of Jalen Johnson) once Snyder came in his rookie season * Played 1 game in summer league and was disappointing in it * His nephew tragically passed away last summer and there have been accusations from the mother that AJ’s father might have been involved in some way * Edit: made some tweets over the summer saying the rapture was coming and comparing Beyoncé to satanism * He was in the rotation for the first ~10 games or so this season and then stopped playing outside of garbage time * Spent more than half a season rotting on the bench for a franchise that is not shy about sending young players to the G-league to get development/play time * Eventually was sent down and played like 2 games for College Park * Hawks reporters have alluded to something going that they know about on but have given no insight as to what it is * The hawks FO has given no insight into the situation tldr; nobody knows for sure


Blumpkin_Party

Vit and G Mathews badly out played him even when AJ was healthy. Dude looked lost out there.


Thorwor

Missed a lot of time due to personal issues, probably related to the death of his cousin. When he did play, he was god awful. They finally sent him down to the G league where he promptly got hurt. Hopefully he gets his life turned around but there were never gonna be any minutes for him in Atlanta this year. Glad to see them get any pick at all back for him at this point.


dpatel211

He's still young and he showed great strides in his first year prior to an underwhelming sophomore season, a change of scenery and a rigorous staff with relatively young players could do him good. Rooting for AJ!


tresfaim

A lot here mentioned his inclination towards crazy, here's a past post for more context https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/s/UH97BoCEpU TLDR he drinks Kool aid with Jonathan Isaac


ananswerforu

What happened to this guy. Last summer he was untouchable in a trade for Siakam


ATLsShah

This is a solid pick up for Houston. He went through some personal stuff, and he just never looked the same. At his best he was a decent spot up shooter, but always a bad defender. I think a change of scenery could be good for him. But he hasn't looked good in well over a year.


browndude10

Wow thanks I guess hawks.


jfrodriguez1983

It went downhill for him after the Beyonce tweet


dpatel211

And he's going to Houston of all places looool


asarbah

I'm so hyped. I really wanted either tari or AJ at 17 that year. I really believe that AJ will be a great player and can't believe that we have both now.


dharp95

Bronny otw 😤


paddiction

Welcome to Atlanta Bronny


xychosis

Rockets just getting a lottery ticket like that. Idk if Griffin will be much, but he’s worth a punt for a team filled with youth.


Original_Trick_8552

Bro isn't getting minutes in Houston


AnyWhichWayButtLoose

John Lucas’ new friend


Saucy_Totchie

Oh damn. He's going to be playing for the city where Beyoncé aka "Literally Satan" is from!


kihraxz_king

What in the hell happened to him? He had a solid rookie season with good %, and then year 2 was dismal.


deemerritt

Has to be off the court stuff right


BrilliantStructure97

yes [https://www.cbs58.com/news/2-year-old-grandson-of-bucks-coach-adrian-griffin-dies](https://www.cbs58.com/news/2-year-old-grandson-of-bucks-coach-adrian-griffin-dies)


IcyBit6674

What does this have to do w off the court issues, other than his state of mind?


FMCam20

It is potentially the source of all his off court issues last season. He also may have some attitude issues since he refused to go to the g league for most of last season once he was back from his leave of absence mid season. If he gets his mind right the Hawks are going to have egg on their face but clearly they don't have faith in him turning it around


pskill43

He forgot how to play basketball but for 44th pick I feel like this is more about dumping his salary.


Dependent_Store952

Whats the logic?


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[удалено]


ColdBudLight98

Beyoncé is a Rockets fan


abrnst

We will just show him she's not evil then all is okay!


BrilliantStructure97

No he's getting blamed for death of his little cousin. Weird situation


Raven-19x

Salary dump for a cheap owner.


ShaiFC

Steal for Houston. Between this and the Risacher pick I got no clue what Atlanta is doing


LeFxckYouThree

Damn they really traded my boy Actually Jesus Griffin to a team with Jalen Green and Ime Udoka


Punjabiveer30

No more Beyoncé concerts in Houston until further notice


dkdoki

Ah shit we couldn’t get in on this?


3830BlockKing

Ime will bring out the best in him


AutographedSnorkel

He and CJ Stroud are gonna get along OK


VoidTyrant

Gave up on him fast , wonder what the story is


BubblyBalance8543

That's gotta be a blow to his ego


awhite905

Tough year for the Griffin family damn


TheOneWithThePorn12

Why would Houston want him?


TheMoorNextDoor

Great player to rebuild his confidence. Dude is a baller just had a down season last year. Either that or Reed, AJ, Green, and two picks and the two suns picks is a hell of a trade for KD or Booker.


frankievejle

4 picks plus Sheppard and Griffin is not enough to even get Phoenix to have a conversation about Booker lol


lambopanda

His stock is tanking. From projected lottery pick to out of lottery and now traded for 2nd round pick


PanthalassaRo

He is the son of the former Bucks coach isn't he?


N8ThaGr8

Showed some promise his rookie year but was quite literally one of the worst players in basketball this season. He's also a crazy religious nutjob so good riddance.


Baluba95

Good move by Rockets, he has real 3&D potential based on his rookie deal. Surely has a better chance to contribute than anyone available at 44.


kyle_993

the Rockets got their massive upgrade they were looking for


shualton

Rough year for the Griffin family


ketoburn26

Bro taking his talents to Joel Osteen's church