A player who was selected in the first round of the NBA draft is abandoning the sport to pursue a career in ministry.
AJ Griffin, who was chosen by the Atlanta Hawks with the sixteenth choice in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft, made the announcement in a video that he is quitting the sport “to follow Jesus.” Griffin was taken by the Hawks.
“In order to follow Jesus, I decided to give up basketball,” stated Griffin. “And I am aware that in the eyes of a great number of people, that seems to be – in the eyes of the whole globe, that appears to be a loss. But I just wanted to let you guys know that I am really thrilled because I will be able to serve God with my whole heart and with all of my time as well. I believe that giving up basketball will make it possible for me to enter full-time ministry and genuinely serve the Lord with all of my heart and with all of my time as well. To put it simply, I can’t wait to see where it takes me.
In his seven-minute video, Griffin provided an explanation of his choice and the circumstances that led to it.
He said in the description of the video, “This decision may seem crazy or abnormal to the world, but I’m not here to please man but only my Father in Heaven.” These words were included in the film.
Griffin claims that he “truly accepted” Christianity during the COVID-19 epidemic and that he “gave his life to Christ in 2020.” This was after he had a stellar freshman season at Duke University in 2021, which led to his entry into the NBA Draft.
“He found me,” Griffin said with a grin as he went on to narrate what took place after that. My decision to give my life to Christ was, without a doubt, the finest one I’ve ever made in my whole life. I believe that my heart did begin to change, and that my ideals began to shift as well.
Before he became interested in religion in the year 2020, Griffin, who is the son of Adrian Griffin, a former NBA player and coach, said that basketball will be his whole life. In his statement, Griffin said, “That was the reason why I was living,” and he went on to mention that after discovering God, he recognized that his love was religion.
Throughout the last several years, the basketball superstar has used his many social media channels to read passages from the Bible, engage in conversations about religion, and provide inspirational religious guidance.
“You can see how I just love spreading the good news of the gospel because I know how much it’s changed my life,” Griffin stated in the video that he used to make the announcement. He went on to say, “I want to reach people more through my platforms.” That, I believe, is the most concise explanation of why I decided to leave basketball.
It was recently reported by CBS Sports that Griffin was dealt from the Atlanta Hawks to the Houston Rockets, where he failed throughout the summer league season of the National Basketball Association. A story that was published earlier this month by the Houston Chronicle said that the Rockets purchased Griffin’s contract for a sum of $250,000, so bringing an end to his short career with the franchise.
As of right now, it would seem like Griffin is completely abandoning his basketball career.
I would want to express my gratitude to everyone who has been a part of this journey,” Griffin stated in the description of his video. As I move out of one phase of my life, I am thrilled to enter a new phase with my Lord and Savior. I am looking forward to this new phase.