Houston Rockets player AJ Griffin has moved a step closer to quitting basketball after just two seasons in the NBA.
The Rockets waived the 21-year-old on Friday, according to The Athletic, speeding up his exit from professional basketball.
Griffin was drafted No. 16 overall by the Atlanta Hawks in 2022 and played two seasons before being traded to the Rockets in June of this year.
The son of former Milwaukee Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin is yet to play a game for his new team, but he is now expected to quit the sport entirely.
In his rookie season with the Hawks, the former first-round pick appeared in 72 games with 12 starts, averaging 19.5 minutes per game.
Houston Rockets player AJ Griffin has moved a step close to quitting basketball
The small forward is the son of former Milwaukee Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin (right)
However, his role diminished as he struggled with an ankle injury during his second year in the NBA. He appeared in just 20 games, averaging 8.6 minutes per game last season.
After his production decreased, the Hawks ultimately decided to move on from him this offseason in late June.
Atlanta traded Griffin to the Rockets for the No. 44 pick in this year’s draft before trading that pick to Miami to obtain rights to guard/forward Nikola Djurisic of Serbia.
Griffin appeared for the Rockets during the NBA’s Summer League in Las Vegas this summer but the forward could leave the game all together before suiting up in a regular season game for his new team.
The news of his potential departure comes just weeks before the start of training camp with the 2024-25 season slated to begin on October 22.
