Staffer who Blake Griffin punched 'no longer with team,' per report

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2016/07/blake_griffin_rumors_2016_staf.html#incart_river_index



Blake Griffin rumors 2016: Staffer who Los Angeles Clippers star punched 'no longer with team,' per report





Per a report, the staffer Blake Griffin punched earlier this season will no longer be with the team. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok, File)



Tom Westerholm | twesterh@masslive.com By Tom Westerholm | twesterh@masslive.com



on July 28, 2016 at 12:37 PM, updated July 28, 2016 at 12:57 PM
Los Angeles Clippers star Blake Griffin missed a significant portion of last year with a broken hand, suffered when he punched Clippers staffer Matias Testi after a fight at a restaurant.

Per a report from the Orange County Register's Dan Woike, that staffer is no longer with the team.

Here's Woike:

Clippers assistant equipment manager Matias Testi, who was involved in an altercation with forward Blake Griffin outside a Toronto restaurant in January, will not be on the Clippers staff next season, a team official confirmed.

The Clippers wouldn't comment whether Testi was fired or if he left on his own accord.

This story, among a few others, is part of the reason why Griffin's name keeps coming up in trade rumors, although it's worth noting that Doc Rivers vehemently denied those rumors recently and — as Jay King noted — sounds like a coach planning to win right now.

The fact remains that it's borderline impossible to replace a star of Griffin's caliber with another equally talented star, and if the Clippers plan to win with a core of DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul, they can't do a whole lot better than Griffin. If they want to go through a modified rebuild, they could look for assets (i.e. draft picks and young players, which is why the Boston Celtics have been tied to them), but if they are looking to compete for a title trading Griffin might be a disaster, and unfortunately for Testi, it's a lot easier to replace an equipment manager than it is to replace a superstar.

Noted Boston Celtics fan and editor-in-chief of The Ringer Bill Simmons thinks this story might keep going for a while.

I'm gonna predict that we haven't heard the last of this story...https://t.co/UhEYPcOmAE

— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) July 28, 2016



He might not be wrong.


bob
MY NOTE:  The lesson to be learned here is "if you work for a major league sports team and one of the superstars want to hit you, it is your responsibility to make sure they make contact with the softer tissue areas of your body such as your throat or stomach.  If he surprises you and you cannot bare your throat quickly enough, then letting him punch you in the nose might be acceptable, unless he misses and hits your forehead or cheek.  Any damages incurred because you were not quick enough to position your throat in the path of their fist may result in your dismissal".

.

bobheckler wrote:http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2016/07/blake_griffin_rumors_2016_staf.html#incart_river_index



Blake Griffin rumors 2016: Staffer who Los Angeles Clippers star punched 'no longer with team,' per report





Per a report, the staffer Blake Griffin punched earlier this season will no longer be with the team. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok, File)



Tom Westerholm | twesterh@masslive.com By Tom Westerholm | twesterh@masslive.com



on July 28, 2016 at 12:37 PM, updated July 28, 2016 at 12:57 PM
Los Angeles Clippers star Blake Griffin missed a significant portion of last year with a broken hand, suffered when he punched Clippers staffer Matias Testi after a fight at a restaurant.

Per a report from the Orange County Register's Dan Woike, that staffer is no longer with the team.

Here's Woike:

Clippers assistant equipment manager Matias Testi, who was involved in an altercation with forward Blake Griffin outside a Toronto restaurant in January, will not be on the Clippers staff next season, a team official confirmed.

The Clippers wouldn't comment whether Testi was fired or if he left on his own accord.

This story, among a few others, is part of the reason why Griffin's name keeps coming up in trade rumors, although it's worth noting that Doc Rivers vehemently denied those rumors recently and — as Jay King noted — sounds like a coach planning to win right now.

The fact remains that it's borderline impossible to replace a star of Griffin's caliber with another equally talented star, and if the Clippers plan to win with a core of DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul, they can't do a whole lot better than Griffin. If they want to go through a modified rebuild, they could look for assets (i.e. draft picks and young players, which is why the Boston Celtics have been tied to them), but if they are looking to compete for a title trading Griffin might be a disaster, and unfortunately for Testi, it's a lot easier to replace an equipment manager than it is to replace a superstar.

Noted Boston Celtics fan and editor-in-chief of The Ringer Bill Simmons thinks this story might keep going for a while.

I'm gonna predict that we haven't heard the last of this story...https://t.co/UhEYPcOmAE

— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) July 28, 2016



He might not be wrong.


bob
MY NOTE:  The lesson to be learned here is "if you work for a major league sports team and one of the superstars want to hit you, it is your responsibility to make sure they make contact with the softer tissue areas of your body such as your throat or stomach.  If he surprises you and you cannot bare your throat quickly enough, then letting him punch you in the nose might be acceptable, unless he misses and hits your forehead or cheek.  Any damages incurred because you were not quick enough to position your throat in the path of their fist may result in your dismissal".

.

I smell a lawsuit , or preventive settlement.

Maybe it has already been settled, complete with gag order.

gyso wrote:Maybe it has already been settled, complete with gag order.

I'd say this is most likely. What does an assistant equipment manager make each year? 35-50k? A 100k handshake and maybe agreeing to pay for his education if he went back to school and chose a different more lucrative career path would make me never mention the Blake incident again.