# The Griffin trade

Sports · Heat 1.1 / 10 · 2 shows · 11m airtime

On January 29, 2018, Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Clippers had agreed to trade Blake Griffin to the Pistons for Tobias Harris, Avery Bradley, Boban Marjanovic and two draft picks, months after Griffin signed a five-year near-max deal in Los Angeles. Reporting has since filled in the 2017 free-agency courtship: Clippers staff wore 'Pioneer' shirts featuring Griffin among historical figures at his meeting, and Gillian Zucker texted Griffin's agent before tip-off asking whether he could shake Steve Ballmer's hand. Griffin later confronted Lawrence Frank in his office and was told he would be the first to know; he learned of the trade from Wojnarowski's tweet. The discussion centers on the staging of that pitch against the speed of the reversal.

Page: https://boilpoints.com/point/the_griffin_trade_152692981

## Segments

- [Pablo Torre Finds Out](https://boilpoints.com/u/pablotorrefindsout), 2026-10-20, 9:22 to 14:00: **Retells the trade from Griffin's side**. Griffin walks through the 2017 'Pioneer' recruiting shirt and the Wojnarowski tweet six months later, then reads the trade return and his 7 a.m. flight to Detroit. A first-hand retelling of the reversal. New angle: Clippers staff wore 'Pioneer' shirts, with Griffin among historical figures, at his 2017 free-agency meeting.
- [Pablo Torre Finds Out](https://boilpoints.com/u/pablotorrefindsout), 2026-10-20, 13:55 to 18:33: **Interviews Griffin on his return to Los Angeles**. Griffin narrates his first return to Los Angeles in a Pistons uniform: the 44-point game, the pregame handshake he skipped, and the text from Gillian Zucker asking him to shake Steve Ballmer's hand. A first-hand account of the fallout from the trade, not a retelling of it. New angle: Gillian Zucker texted Griffin's agent before tip-off asking whether he could shake Steve Ballmer's hand.
- [The Bill Simmons Podcast](https://boilpoints.com/u/thebillsimmonspodcast), 2026-10-21, 44:30 to 46:20: **Interviews Griffin on the trade from inside**. Griffin, in his own words, walks through the trade from the inside: the extension, the rumblings, the meeting with Lawrence Frank where he was promised he would be the first to know, and the Woj tweet that beat the call. First-hand account of the reversal the card had only in outline. New angle: Griffin confronted Lawrence Frank in his office and was told he would be the first to know; he learned of the trade from Woj's tweet.