Eric Griffin (basketball)

Eric Londery Griffin (born May 26, 1990) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for Hiwassee College, Garden City CC and Campbell University before playing professionally in Italy, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, the United Arab Emirates, Dominican Republic, Israel and Poland.

Eric Griffin
Griffin with Fileni Jesi in December 2012
Free agent
PositionPower forward
Personal information
Born (1990-05-26) May 26, 1990
Orlando, Florida
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High schoolBoone (Orlando, Florida)
College
NBA draft2012 / Undrafted
Playing career2012–present
Career history
2012–2013Fileni BPA Jesi
2014Leones de Ponce
2014Guaros de Lara
2014Indios de San Francisco de Macorís
2014–2015Texas Legends
2015Leones de Ponce
2015–2016Al-Nasr Dubai SC
2016–2017Hapoel Gilboa Galil
2017Salt Lake City Stars
2018Hapoel Eilat
2018Pallacanestro Reggiana
2019Basket Zielona Góra
2019Ironi Nahariya
2019–2020Adelaide 36ers
Career highlights and awards

High school and college career

Griffin attended Maynard Evans High School in Orlando, Florida, before transferring to Boone High School for his senior year after being cut multiple times from the basketball team at Evans. At Boone, he met head coach and former LSU guard Willie Anderson, who recognized Griffin's freakish athleticism and unrelenting hunger for greatness. Anderson was the first one to give Griffin a chance, and he didn't disappoint.[1]

Following a solid first year of organized basketball, Griffin went on to play for Hiwassee Community College in Tennessee, where he averaged 16 points, six rebounds and two blocks per game in 2008–09. But when the small junior college lost its accreditation in 2009, Griffin was forced to move on.[1] He transferred to Garden City Community College in Kansas, and in 2009–10, he played 32 games, averaging 8.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game.[2]

In 2010, Griffin transferred to Campbell University. In his junior season, he scored in double figures 20 times, had five double-digit rebounding nights and set a school single-season Division I era (since 1977–78) record with 61 blocked shots. In 29 games (22 starts), he averaged 13.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 2.1 blocks in 28.1 minutes per game.[2][3]

In his senior season, Griffin was named to the 2012 All-Big South Conference first team. In his two-year career at Campbell, he finished with the school's highest career field goal percentage (.559) and ranks third on the school's all-time blocks list with 134 rejections. In 31 games, he averaged 15.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.4 blocks in 30.3 minutes per game.[3]

Professional career

2012–13 season

After going undrafted in the 2012 NBA draft, Griffin joined the Los Angeles Lakers for the 2012 NBA Summer League. On July 27, 2012, he signed with Fileni BPA Jesi of Italy for the 2012–13 season.[4] In 28 games for Fileni, he averaged 17.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

2013–14 season

In July 2013, Griffin joined the Miami Heat for the 2013 NBA Summer League. On September 10, 2013, he signed with the Heat,[5] but was later waived on October 26 after appearing in seven preseason games.[6]

In December 2013, Griffin signed with Leones de Ponce of Puerto Rico for the 2014 Americas League.[7] In February 2014, he signed with Guaros de Lara of Venezuela for the rest of the 2014 LPB season.[8] He left Guaros de Lara the following month after appearing in just six games. He later signed with Indios de San Francisco de Macorís of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto in May.[9] In 17 games for Indios, he averaged 13.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists and 1.3 blocks per game.[10]

2014–15 season

In July 2014, Griffin joined the Dallas Mavericks for the 2014 NBA Summer League.[11] On July 18, he signed with the Mavericks,[12] but was later waived on October 21 after appearing in two preseason games.[13] On November 3, 2014, he was acquired by the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League as an affiliate player of the Mavericks.[14] On February 4, 2015, he was named to the Futures All-Star team for the 2015 NBA D-League All-Star Game.[15] In 49 games for Texas in 2014–15, he averaged 19.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.4 blocks per game.[16]

On April 15, 2015, Griffin returned to Leones de Ponce, signing with them for the rest of the 2015 BSN season.[17] In 14 games for Leones, he averaged 10.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 blocks per game.

2015–16 season

In July 2015, Griffin joined the Los Angeles Clippers for the Orlando Summer League[18] and the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Las Vegas Summer League.[19] He signed with the Detroit Pistons on September 28, 2015,[20] but was waived on October 7.[21]

On November 10, 2015, Griffin signed with UAE basketball club Al-Nasr Dubai SC.[22] His final game for Al-Nasr came on April 16, 2016.[23]

2016–17 season

On August 18, 2016, Griffin signed with Hapoel Gilboa Galil of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.[24] On April 18, 2017, Griffin participated in the Israeli League All-Star Game and won the Slam Dunk Contest during the same event.[25] Griffin played 33 games for Gilboa Galil and averaged 14.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.8 blocks per game.

2017–18 season

On July 3, 2017, Griffin signed with Pallacanestro Cantù of the Serie A.[26] Prior to joining Cantù, he played for the Utah Jazz's Summer League team in both Utah and Las Vegas.[27][28] After impressing during the Summer League, he opted out of his deal with Cantù[29] and signed a two-way contract with the Jazz on July 20, 2017.[30][31] He played 19 games for the Utah's G League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars, before being waived by the Jazz on December 21, 2017. He did not appear in a game for the Jazz during his time with them.[32]

On January 26, 2018, Griffin returned to Israel for a second stint, signing with Hapoel Eilat for the rest of the season.[33] On February 4, 2018, he made his debut in a 72–84 loss to Hapoel Jerusalem, recording 13 points and 8 rebounds off the bench.[34] On June 3, 2018, Griffin recorded a season-high 30 points, shooting 10-of-13 from the field, along with 7 rebounds and 2 assists in an 81–87 playoff loss to Hapoel Holon.[35]

2018–19 season

On July 23, 2018, Griffin signed with the Italian club Pallacanestro Reggiana.[36] On December 13, he parted ways with Reggiana after appearing in six games.[37] On January 1, 2019, Griffin signed with the Polish team Stelmet Zielona Gora for the rest of the season.[38] However, on January 16, 2019, Griffin parted ways with Zielona Góra after appearing in two games.[39]

On January 17, 2019, Griffin returned to Israel for a third stint, signing with Ironi Nahariya for the rest of the season.[40] Two days later, he made his debut in a 93–103 loss to Ironi Nes Ziona, recording 17 points, eight rebounds and three blocks off the bench.[41]

2019–20 season

On June 24, 2019, Griffin signed with the Adelaide 36ers for the 2019–20 NBL season.[42]

Personal life

Griffin is the son of James Martin and Alma Bracy, and has three siblings: Bacarrai Bracy, Damien King and Adrian King.[2]

In June 2016, the State of Florida dropped a two-month-old charge of attempted first degree murder with a firearm against Griffin.[43] Griffin and a friend had been arrested in late April 2016 for an Orlando-area shooting that involved 24-year-old Treavor Glover.[44][45] The Florida State Attorney's Office determined that it was not suitable for prosecution, finding that Griffin was falsely identified (the victim described the man who shot him as being "around 6-foot to 6-2"; Griffin is 6-9) while determining that Griffin had an alibi (his alarm system was on the night of the shooting until the following morning, and a motion detector picked him up as movement in a hallway).[24]

gollark: ddg! イエーイ
gollark: My actions are beyond your comprehension.
gollark: Give the xkcd role to <@239393683508559873>, my alt.
gollark: Such as dinosaur comics, Freefall, Schlock Mercenary, and the Order of the Stick.
gollark: But I follow other webcomics, unlike andrew, who is uncool and does not.

References
  1. Green, Austin (May 25, 2012). "Future NBA Player Eric Griffin an Inspiration for Anyone Who's Ever Been Cut". BleacherReport.com. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  2. "21 - Eric Griffin". GoCamels.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  3. "Eric Griffin Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  4. "Jesi lands rookie Eric Griffin". Sportando.com. July 27, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  5. "HEAT Signs Griffin and Hamilton". NBA.com. September 10, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  6. "HEAT Waive Griffin and Hamilton". NBA.com. October 26, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  7. "Eric Griffin Reaches Deal With Puerto Rican Team". Sportando.com. December 17, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  8. "Guaros contrata a Eric Griffin". Elimpulso.com (in Spanish). February 18, 2014. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  9. "Los Indios contratan al canastero norteamericano Walter Baxley". DiarioLibre.com (in Spanish). May 13, 2014. Retrieved July 29, 2016.
  10. "Indios de San Francisco 2014 stats" (PDF). LNB.com.do (in Spanish). Retrieved July 29, 2016.
  11. "2014 Mavericks Summer Leaugue Schedule/Roster". Mavs.com. July 7, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  12. "Mavericks sign Forward Eric Griffin". Mavs.com. July 18, 2014. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  13. "MAVERICKS REQUEST WAIVERS ON GRIFFIN AND TOGASHI". Mavs.com. October 21, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  14. "Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. November 3, 2014. Archived from the original on November 6, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  15. "Thirteen NBA Veterans Headline Rosters for NBA Development League All-Star Game Presented by Kumho Tire". NBA.com. February 4, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  16. "Eric Griffin D-League Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  17. "Eric Griffin moves to Leones de Ponce". Sportando.com. April 15, 2015. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  18. "ERIC GRIFFIN PLAYER PROFILE". NBA.com. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  19. "Cavs Announce 2015 Samsung NBA Summer League Roster". NBA.com. July 7, 2015. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  20. "Detroit Pistons Announce 2015 Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. September 28, 2015. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  21. "Detroit Pistons Waive Eric Griffin". NBA.com. October 7, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  22. Madwar, Ahmad (November 10, 2015). "Al Naser tabs Eric Griffin !!". Asia-basket.com. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  23. Gardner, Sam (July 17, 2016). "ERIC GRIFFIN'S NBA DREAM SHOULD NOT END LIKE THIS". FoxSports.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  24. Begley, Ian (August 18, 2016). "Eric Griffin, cleared of attempted murder charge, signs with Israeli team". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  25. "אלוף תחרות ההטבעות: אריק גריפין". basket.co.il (in Hebrew). April 18, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  26. "Pallacanestro Cantù signs Eric Griffin". Sportando.com. July 3, 2017. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  27. Schmidt, Dakota (June 23, 2017). "Eric Griffin To Play For Utah Jazz In NBA Summer League". RidiculousUpside.com. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  28. Andrews, Kendra (July 5, 2017). "Jazz get boost off bench from Eric Griffin". sltrib.com. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  29. "Eric Griffin will sign a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz". Sportando.com. July 17, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  30. "Jazz Sign Eric Griffin to a Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  31. Adams, Luke (July 20, 2017). "Jazz Sign Eric Griffin To Two-Way Contract". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  32. Utah Jazz PR (December 21, 2017). "Jazz Sign Erik McCree to Two-way Contract..." Twitter. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  33. "אלוף ההטבעות חוזר: אריק גריפין באילת". basket.co.il (in Hebrew). January 26, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
  34. "Winner League, Game 16: Hapoel J-M Vs Hapoel Eilat". basket.co.il. February 4, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
  35. "Winner League Quarter Final, Game Number 3: UNET Holon Vs Hapoel Eilat". basket.co.il. June 3, 2018. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
  36. "Pallacanestro Reggiana signs Eric Griffin". Sportando.basketball. July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
  37. "Reggio Emilia, Eric Griffin part ways". Sportando.basketball. December 13, 2018. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  38. "Eric Griffin signs with Stelmet Zielona Gora". Sportando.basketball. January 1, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  39. "Stelmet Zielona Gora waive Eric Griffin after two games". Sportando.basketball. January 16, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  40. "ממשיכה להתחזק: גריפין מצטרף לנהריה". basket.co.il (in Hebrew). January 17, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  41. "Winner League, Game 15: Nes Ziona Vs Nahariya". basket.co.il. January 19, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  42. "36ers Sign Eric Griffin as Jacob Wiley Replacement". NBL.com.au. June 24, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  43. Strelow, Bret (June 26, 2016). "Attempted murder charge dropped for basketball player, Campbell alum Eric Griffin". FayObserver.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  44. Gardner, Sam (May 3, 2016). "NBA D League All-Star Eric Griffin facing attempted murder charge". FoxSports.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  45. Strelow, Bret (May 3, 2016). "Ex-Campbell, NBA Summer League player Eric Griffin charged with attempted murder". FayObserver.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
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