AJ Griffin has announced his retirement from professional basketball at just 21 years old, as he is now giving up his career of playing in the NBA to pursue an even higher calling. That is to say, Griffin wants to offer his full time and devotion to "follow Jesus," going after a new vocation in ministry.
AJ Griffin says he’s giving up basketball to “follow Jesus”
Griffin was drafted in 2022 and recently agreed to a buyout with the Rockets so he could pursue ministry
Full story here: https://t.co/XgWrvvWPXC pic.twitter.com/fDy1q5rOaq
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 29, 2024
Notably, Griffin was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 16th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and had a decent rookie season, averaging 8.9 points, while shooting 46.5% FG and 39.0% 3PT.
The former Duke star was currently earning a $4.3 million annual salary, after signing a four-year/$17.1 million rookie deal with the Hawks.
That being said, Griffin was then traded this offseason, as he played in the 2024 NBA Summer League for the Houston Rockets. And with two years left on his contract (2-year/$9.8 million), Griffin has since agreed to a buyout ($250,000) with the team, per Jonathan Fiegan of the Houston Chronicle.
In a video that was shared on his YouTube channel, Griffin explained the reasoning for why he is willing to give up all the fame and fortune that comes with playing in the NBA.
"I gave up basketball to follow Jesus, and I know that in a lot of people's eyes, that seems like a loss in the world's eyes... I feel like letting go of basketball is allowing me to go into full-time ministry and truly serving the Lord with all my heart and with all my time too as well, so I'm just excited to see where that leads me."
Griffin noted that he came to this realization after making "the best decision of his life."
"In 2020, I gave my life to Christ," Griffin said. "And it was the best decision of my life, it truly was. And I think my values started to change, my heart started to change. I think before basketball was my everything, basketball was so-called my passion. I thought that was the reason why I was living, but when I came to God, He truly showed me that we're all made to glorify God, we are all made with a purpose, a God-given purpose. But we must step into that. It's not what we do that makes us, but it's who we are. And when you come to Christ, your identity is in Christ."
This decision might be mind-boggling for many, but he has also gained support from a lot of other "believers" who share the same faith as Griffin.
With this in mind, former Hawks teammate, Dejounte Murray, who Griffin played with for the past two seasons, responded to the news by commending him for taking a stand and demonstrating what really matters in life.
Underneath Griffin's retirement post on Instagram, Murray said, "Love YOU Always Bro!!! Forever With You!!"
To point out, in view of his short playing career, Griffin had a couple memorable highlights, as he became the first rookie since 1993-1994 (Toni Kukoc) to have two game-winning shots in the same season. Furthermore, Griffin did this in the span of a few weeks, with both being overtime buzzer-beaters (November 19 vs. Raptors; 124-122 OT), (December 11 vs. Bulls; 123-122 OT).
AJ GRIFFIN GAME WINNER ‼️ pic.twitter.com/J17V6bJRrF
— Blue Devils (@BlueDevils) November 20, 2022
AJ Griffin not only hit the game-winner for the @ATLHawks… he did it with his dad, Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin, on the opposite sideline. pic.twitter.com/K9fC7pzhEQ
— NBA (@NBA) November 20, 2022
AJ Griffin’s SECOND game winner this season 😳 CLUTCH rook (via @BallySportsSO) pic.twitter.com/GS1ilDSkuW
— Overtime (@overtime) December 12, 2022
All in all, while Griffin could have found success playing basketball for a living, according to him, his decision to retire and follow Jesus came about after he realized his true purpose in life goes far beyond the basketball court. This new mindset evidently shifted his focus to be more spiritual, caring less about the materialistic things of this world or individual accomplishments.
"I don't regret anything, I'm truly am blessed, to have that testimony, of saying, you can have all the riches in the world, but the only thing that truly matters is a relationship with Jesus. That's what I want to share with you guys today, to let you know that Jesus is the only one that can fulfill you, He is the only one that can give you purpose. I felt the Lord was calling me to let go of basketball and truly just serve Him more."
Therefore, Griffin announced that he will continue to create informative faith-based videos on his social media accounts, as he believes he can impact more lives off the court, by ministering to people. Ultimately, Griffin's goal is to spread the Gospel so others may be able to receive the same gift of salvation that saved him when he was at his lowest point.
"I just want to continue sharing the good news of the Gospel to as many people as I can, and I think now I'm able to have my full devotion to the Lord, and I want to reach people more through my platforms."
Instagram: adrian.griffinjr
YouTube: @Ajgriffin2144
