Blake Griffin says he picked Nets over three other teams

He did not name the teams, but Blake Griffin told Rich Eisen On Tuesday, he finally picked the Nets over three other teams after he and the Pistons agreed to a buyout on Friday.

“In the end, I narrowed it down to four teams, so all four are great teams and organizations, but like I keep saying, I tried to make the best decision.” Griffin told Eisen on his Rich Eisen Show, indicating that more than four teams approached him.

“There were certainly other teams. It was by no means an easy decision, but I’ve known KD, James, DeAndre and Kai for a long time and you always think about playing with different guys. In the end, I just made the decision that I thought was the best for me. I am excited about the opportunity and obviously a great team and happy to be a part of the organization.

Before Griffin signed with Brooklyn, Adrian Wojnarowski named the Warriors, Heat and Trail Blazers among those with interest. Others have identified the Lakers and Celtics as interested teams.

When Eisen asked if the “Big Three” Nets and DJ had tried to recruit, Griffin smiled and admitted they had … but claimed everything was legal.

“Not until the appropriate time because of the tampering, but I spoke to some of them,” Griffin said. “Of all the teams I spoke to several guys so like I said it was a tough decision but I went with what I thought was the best.

League rules prohibit teams – and players – from signing from other teams’ rosters … although the rules have not often been enforced, especially among players.

Griffin said he met Steve Nash and talked about his role, this time noting that he expected to play the small ball 5 as well as his traditional role of 4.

“I think they need a 4 and sometimes they play like a little 5 ball to me. I’m here to help where I can. I think at this point in my career I’m able to take on different roles. My whole goal is to help this team win like every year but obviously the teams that I watched, there is a real chance of doing it so I liked all the teams but I am delighted to be a Net.

Indeed, a Nets fan posted a photo of Griffin and Nash meeting earlier Tuesday in Rucola on Dean Street from the Barclays Center.

Griffin also shared how his time in Detroit ended.

“They came to me and said, ‘Hey listen, we’re going in a different direction. It’s pretty much a complete rebuild. This year they kept Derrick Rose and I and they kind of wanted us to quit training camp and mentor and help so many young guys and so many new guys. They wanted us to be there for this. We did and Derrick decided he wanted to try to play for a playoff team and play more minutes somewhere and they honored him.

Specifically, he described how the Detroit front office informed him of their plans.

“’We’ll sit you down for a bit but you can do whatever you want.’ We all thought it was better to let these guys go ahead and play these young guys, whatever they wanted to do, and find something that benefited both of us. I am grateful to this organization. “

Likewise, Pistons general manager Troy Weaver told The Athletic the departure was amicable.

“We really wanted to use it all up,” Weaver said. “We also looked to the commerce market to see if we could facilitate anything to put them in a situation or destination that they would like, as well as to make it a good situation for us. We did not automatically think or assume it would be a buyout. We just landed there. It worked for all parties.

As for whether he could have imagined playing with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden and Jordan, Griffin told Eisen nothing in the NBA surprises him.

“Anything can happen but I guess I would be inclined to believe it. Anything can happen in this league. Now we are here.