Even when he was still a rookie, Blake Griffin was a tough man to intimidate. After all, he stood 6’9″, sported a chiseled physique and had hops for days. He used all these stellar attributes to become an All-Star and win Rookie of the Year honors in his inaugural campaign in the pros.
Despite Griffin’s skill and finesse early in his career, there were still times when he felt the burden of being a newcomer to the NBA. And the best example of this came when he went toe-to-toe against, arguably, the league’s most underrated superstar of all time, Tim Duncan.
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Griffin was mesmerized by Duncan
Griffin missed the entire 2009-10 season due to a knee injury, spending months rehabilitating and conditioning his body to endure the demands of the NBA. Determined to make his mark, he entered the following season highly motivated to prove himself. He immediately went to work, notching double-doubles in his first two games.
However, his fourth pro game saw the Los Angeles Clippers take on the San Antonio Spurs, which set Griffin on a collision course with Duncan. At that time, The Big Fundamental had already established himself as an all-time great, with numerous NBA rings, MVPs and All-NBA Team honors to his name.
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Griffin knew all of this by heart, and so, when he saw Duncan taking shots at the other end of the floor during the pregame shootaround, he couldn’t help but just stare.
“This was like pregame, you know, early, when you have your shooting time,” he shared. “I’m warming up, make a shot, and I turn around. I look to the other end, just kind of glance down there, and Tim Duncan’s like doing his bank shot.”
It’s one thing to watch someone like Vince Carter do otherworldly dunks or Stephen Curry make jumpers from absurd distances; it’s another to be captivated by Duncan making basic bank shots, which spoke volumes about his dedication and mastery of the fundamentals.
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“I kind of stopped. My coach had to be like, ‘Blake, what are you doing?'” he continued. “I stopped and I was watching him, and that’s one of those moments where it really hits you — that you’re about to play against a living legend.”
Duncan had a disarming way about him
While some OGs weren’t very welcoming towards rookies, Duncan had his unique way of welcoming new players like Griffin.
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“Later that game, I remember he kind of made this joke. It was like a free-throw box out, and he’s on the block. I’m next to him, and he kind of bent over, looks over, and goes — he rolled his eyes and goes, ‘Not you again,'” Blake recalled. “And I was like, ‘That was awesome. Tim Duncan just joked with me on the free-throw line!'”
That moment encapsulated Duncan’s personality. Yes, he was a proud competitor who rose to become one of the greatest players of all time. Yet, he never boasted about it nor did he ever rub his greatness in anyone’s face. Instead, he would rather mess around with his opponents and show them that even the best players can have fun on the court.
“That moment for me — I realized later — that was so disarming. As a rookie, you come in, you want to go after everybody. And it just makes you think, man, Tim Duncan’s awesome,” Griffin stressed. “Like, you still want to play your best, but I feel like the guys that were not so welcoming made you want to go extra hard at them.”
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“Timmy just had this way about him that he disarmed you, and then he’d go out and just cook,” he added. “It was so frustrating, but he was so awesome. Honestly, it was an honor.”
Rare is the NBA player who can go out and drop a double-double on someone’s head and still be loved for it. But such was the charm that Duncan held. Yes, Griffin got his “Welcome to the NBA” moment, but not in the way that most rookies do.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 22, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.