PHOENIX — Hawks fans know what rookie AJ Griffin has given the team this season and now fans of other teams will get to see it, too. On Tuesday, the NBA announced that Griffin would be among the 28 rookies, sophomores and G League players in this year’s Rising Stars challenge.
“It’s everything to be able to have that support behind you throughout your career,” Griffin said. “I think it’s pretty cool to just feel the love from the city. I think that’s the best thing you could do as a plyers in this league to put on, I guess, for your city, just to be able to play for them and represent them well.”
Griffin, 19, has averaged 9.7 points and 2.1 rebounds in 47 games. He’s also the second rookie in NBA history to have multiple game-winning buzzer-beaters in a season, joining Chicago’s Toni Kukoč from 1993-94 with his game-winners against the Raptors in November and the Bulls in December.
He’s been able to enjoy his milestones with his father, Adrian Griffin, when they have a moment after games. Though they couldn’t completely enjoy his first buzzer-beater (the elder Griffin is an assistant coach for the Raptors), they’ll be able to completely soak in the atmosphere of All-Star Weekend.
“I think that’s really cool,” the Hawks wing said. “It’s just another memory to add to the year, really. Just, there have been so many other good memories, I think. To share this one coming up, I think it’ll be a fun one to just look back and hopefully hit a few 3′s in the game.”
Throughout this season, Griffin has tried to soak in every moment while remaining true to who he is. It’s what his teammates have encouraged him to do throughout the season. He has a few teammates who have experienced the excitement of being named to the roster in recent years, including Trae Young (2019, 2020), John Collins (2018, 2019) and De’Andre Hunter (2021).
“It’s exciting,” Young said. “I tell AJ all the time, not every rookie gets to play. So, he’s in a position where he gets to play and show his talent. So I always want him to have fun and show his talents, and being able to go in the Rising Stars game, he’s gonna be able to show his talents in front of everybody. So I’m excited for him.”
Young added that he has reminded Griffin to stay locked in, as well as have fun and everything will take care of itself.
For Hunter, he didn’t get the chance to play in the game because the NBA downsized its All-Star Weekend events in 2021 because of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. But he remembers the feeling of being chosen and the motivation it sparked.
“It’s just, once you get recognized for something, you kind of got to work harder, just to keep your name, or keep that reputation around your name,” he said. “That’s how I look at it. So once I got named to that, I was just like, ‘I gotta maintain this.’”
So, he reminded Griffin, who the Hawks selected with the 16th overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft, to remember what earned him the recognition in the first place.
Griffin’s scoring average ranks eighth in the league among rookies, while his 3-point shooting percentage (40.8) ranks third among rookies averaging two or more attempts per game.
“For me, I always tell him just to be himself,” Hunter said. “You know, ‘you got yourself here. The work you did.’ I was like, ‘Don’t change who you are as a player, now. This is when you just show who you really are.’ But that’s the biggest thing. That’s what the older guys told me. ‘Just be yourself and everything else will take care of itself.’”
The challenge is set to take place at 9 p.m. ET Feb. 17 in Salt Lake City.
