Duke's AJ Griffin Has Makings of Key Piece to Thunder Rebuild

Duke forward AJ Griffin holds the physical tools to be a star in the NBA with his size and physicality.

It wasn’t easy and wasn’t always pretty, but AJ Griffin’s freshman season was as advertised.

Griffin was the 12th-ranked player in the class of 2021, signing with Duke during coach Mike Krzyzewski’s farewell tour. Griffin was marketed as an athletic forward with the physical tools to be an elite prospect.

“I always stay motivated, just because it’s an opportunity I want to take advantage of. Just playing at the best college, with the best coach there is, in my opinion,” Griffin told The Athletic. “And I just feel it’s an opportunity most kids don’t get, so I want to fully take advantage of it. That’s how I’ll stay motivated.”

Now, as the days tick closer to the NBA draft, the Duke freshman is now being marketed to the NBA possessing the same skills. A year of development at the highest level of college basketball later, Griffin is once again a top-15 prospect, top-10 in most mock drafts.

Griffin, 6-foot-6 and 222 pounds, is marketed as a forward whose skillset and size best fit for the small forward position in the NBA.

Griffin averaged 10.4 points per game while shooting just under 50% at 49.3%. Griffin also developed his 3-point shot from high school through his college career as he shot 44.7% from beyond the arc this season.

Griffin also averaged nearly four rebounds per game, sitting at 3.9. His scoring efficiency, paired with his rebounding ability, could help the Thunder immensely in the small forward role.

Griffin has dealt with some injuries throughout his basketball career, mostly in high school. But at the beginning of his lone college season those injuries again flared up. When Griffin is healthy, his skillset of athleticism, vision and physicality mesh perfectly and provide an intriguing prospect not only for Oklahoma City but the NBA in general. Griffin is projected to be a mid-level lottery pick who could be on the board for both of the Thunder’s picks in the upcoming draft.

“He's just a rising star. He's not a rising good player. He's a rising star,” Krzyzewski said following Duke’s game against Louisville this season.

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