Blake Griffin thrilled Nets added LaMarcus Aldridge

Blake Griffin is like everyone else. His head has been spinning since the Nets added former seven-time All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge to a cast that already includes former All-Stars Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, DeAndre Jordan and, oh yeah, himself.

Aldridge joins a frontcourt that now includes big men Durant, Jordan, Griffin, Jeff Green, second-year sensation Nic Claxton and rookie Reggie Perry.

"I mean, he’s a great player," Griffin said of Aldridge after Monday morning’s shootaround before the Nets faced the Timberwolves at Barclays Center. "I’ve had so much respect for him for a long, long time. I’ve gotten to know him over the years.

"I just have a ton of respect for him. He’s a basketball purist. He loves basketball, he loves to work on his game and I always align with that. So I’m thrilled to have him. It’s pretty crazy."

Asked to define the "crazy" part of the Nets’ roster equation, Griffin sounded like a fan as much as a player. "I just think that it’s all because we’ve been playing against each other for so long," he said. "His talent level is undeniable. It’s just kind of crazy how it all comes together.

"You know, at the beginning of the season, if you had said that James and LaMarcus and I would end up with the Nets, like, everybody is betting against that. So it’s just kind of how it all comes together, how it all shakes out. That being said, we still have a ton of work to do and we still have to prove ourselves."

Griffin said an All-Star cast doesn’t necessarily guarantee success, and he cited the Lakers’ signings in 2012 of Dwight Howard and current Nets coach Steve Nash, who was near the end of his Hall of Fame career.

At the same time, Griffin had to add, "It’s crazy just in the sense that these are guys I have been playing against for so long and now we’re all on the same team."

Aldridge did not play against the Timberwolves. Because he last played on March 1 for the Spurs in an overtime loss to the Nets, Nash said he will need time to "ramp up" to game condition.

When Aldridge is ready to play again, Nash might have a difficult time determining how to spread the playing time, especially when Durant returns from his prolonged absence.

Griffin was coming off a 17-point game in a win over the Pistons in Detroit, which is his high since joining the Nets.

Asked if he has any concerns about playing time, he said: "The best part about that is it’s not my job to worry about that. Steve and the coaching staff, that’s what they will do, and whatever decision they make, I’ll trust it. Like I said at the beginning of this, we’re looking at the bigger picture. So I’m thrilled to have LaMarcus on the team."

Since Durant and Irving signed with the Nets as free agents in the summer of 2019, Brooklyn has become a destination for top players.

Asked to define the lure of the Nets, Griffin said: "Winning obviously is a huge one, but also the organization. You want to be a part of an organization that really does things the right way. I’ve only been here three weeks, but from top to bottom, no detail is left unnoticed. They do a great job of taking care of their players.

"Their performance staff is unbelievable. Coaching staff to support staff to everything, they just do a great job. That’s a credit to our owner [Joe Tsai] and Sean [Marks, the general manager] and how he runs the program and all the way down."

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.