Blake Griffin finally made his Nets debut on Sunday.
It was the veteran forward’s ambidextrous opinion – his first since 2019 – that got the Barclays Center crowd going. But it was Griffin’s subtle impact on Nets’ victory over Washington that made Steve Nash smile.
“I loved Blake,” said Nash. I don’t think he filled the stat magazine, just his experience, intelligence, made winning plays. He was plus-12 in 15 minutes, so I thought Blake was great, and you can see how he can help us. “
Griffin had only two runs and two rebounds at 2:57 PM. But finishing a game-high plus-12, he showed basketball acumen and defensive versatility.
“It was a great man, just to be out there and get a little bit of a rhythm was great,” Griffin said. “It is difficult to recreate the atmosphere of a real game. So getting out of there made you feel good and felt like it was a great start. But you know, there is of course some room to improve. “
Griffin took an attack on Bradley Beal, screened Landry Shamet open for a corner 3-pointer, and yes, blew Robin Lopez in the middle for a two-handed dunk. It was his first since December 2019, and the Cheshire Cat grin on the way up – with the bank of Nets erupting – showed just how much it meant.
“It felt great. I knew once it happened it was going to be something. And so I tried not to look at the sofa when I came back down. But then I peeked a little over, and I saw the DeAndre all the way to the side, and I saw [everybody] rise. So it’s hard not to smile in that situation. But it felt good to just get that out of the way and move on, ”said Griffin, saying he heard the crowd’s reaction.
“I think our audience has been great,” he said. “Obviously limited, but our audience was great. I kind of noticed, tried to stay locked up, but definitely heard [them]But the best thing about a large crowd is that when there’s a moment in the game and fans are knowledgeable, they know what’s going on, they cheer everyone on our team. I always enjoy playing in front of an audience that knows what’s going on. “
Landry Shamet sustained a right ankle sprain and will be evaluated on Monday.
“I do not know [the severity]He’ll definitely have a scan or imaging and then we’ll move on, ” Nash said. “But unfortunately I have no further details.”
Kevin Durant missed his 15th game in a row with a hamstring injury.
With the Nets having to fill one of their two open roster spots on Monday, they will do so by adding six-foot, 212-pound Alize Johnson. The move was first reported by ESPN and confirmed by The Post.
Johnson, who was selected in the second round in 2018, had played sparingly for Indiana in his first two years, shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from deep last season. He dominated the G-League for Raptors 905 and is a favorite to be named MVP in the league on Monday. He averaged 16.6 points and came second in rebounding (13.3) and efficiency (27.2).
According to The Ringer, Johnson attracted interest from the Magic, Raptors, Rockets, Spurs and Suns. Brooklyn still has an open selection spot with Thursday’s trade deadline and Shamet’s injury. If they need a long-term replacement, JJ Redick – who lives in Brooklyn off-season – could be a possible match.