Taylor Griffin Biography, Married- 5 Facts About The Former Basketball Player

The hall of fame of basketball is littered with the work of men who have dedicated their lives to the legacy of the game, Taylor Griffin is one of such men. He is one of the Griffin brothers and is regarded with honor and respect among his basketball peers.

Taylor Griffin played for a couple of clubs and in the process, was able to finesse his basketball skills. He is, without doubt, considered to be a very good player. Taylor Griffin proved that with passion and talent, playing the game was fun and worth the while.

To learn more about Taylor Griffin and his incredible basketball career, keep reading on.

Taylor Griffin Biography And Early Life

This basketball player was born in Oklahoma City on the 18th of April, 1986. His parents Tommy and Gail are a biracial couple as Tommy is Haitian and Gail is a white woman. This makes Taylor Griffin bi-racial. He is the first child of his parents and an older brother to the NBA star, Blake Griffin.

This basketball player was homeschooled from the first grade up until the tenth grade when he and his brother were enrolled at the high school they attended. Additionally, Taylor Griffin identifies as a devout Christian. He was raised in the Christian way and he has remained so even as an adult.

When the brothers started high school at the Christian private school, Oklahoma Christian School, they were instantly put into the basketball program by their father who was the school’s head coach. While he and his brother played on the school’s team, they led the team to victory at the state championship level twice.

Taylor Griffin went ahead to study at the University of California where he also played on the school’s team. He spent four years with the school until he graduated in 2009. In that year, right after graduation, Taylor Griffin decided to join the NBA draft of that year. He was selected in the second round by the Phoenix suns and was the 48th pick of that year.

When he first joined the Suns in 2009 he was continuously loaned to the Iowa team, Iowa Energy. By the end of the 2010 season, he decided to move to Europe, his first year in Europe was spent with a Belgian team, Belgacom Liege Basket. Taylor Griffin was in Europe for only a year before coming back, to join the NBA.

Upon his return, in December of 2011, he was signed to the Charlotte Bobcats, based in North Carolina but they decided to waive his contract. The Dakota Wizards then decided to offer him a contract. Griffin has since played for two other teams and he has returned to Europe where he is playing with the Italian team, Pallacanestro Trapani.

Taylor Griffin Is Married

Taylor Griffin is currently married to Marieka Willis; the couple got married in 2012. Both of them met when they were both at Oklahoma Christian School and had started dating then. Griffin had proposed to Willis right before he moved over to Belgium.

Marieka stated in an interview that she was expecting the proposal to come by the end of that year or the first month of the next year. But on the night before his trip to Belgium, he got her to follow him to his apartment where he had made a path with roses and at the end of the path was him on his knees asking her to marry him. Marieka described the proposal as magical, for her Taylor Griffin is the love of her life. They have no children yet, but in the same interview, Marieka has stated that they want four children.

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Facts About The Former Basketball Player

1. His Younger Brother Ranks Higher Than Him

When the statistics of his career are put against that of his brother’s it is clear that the younger Griffin is a much better player. The duo joined the NBA draft of 2009 together but Blake got picked first, he was actually the first pick of that year’s draft.

As a result of this, he has not played in as many teams which in turn has affected his net worth and earnings and his younger brother is said to earn more than him.

2. Taylor Griffin Comes From An Athletic Family 

Tommy Griffin, Taylor’s father also played Basketball. But he only played the game at the collegiate level. He played the position of center. Although his career did not go far, it obviously rubbed off on his son who decided to take it further. Tommy Griffin’s sons decided to pursue a career in professional basketball.

3. Taylor Griffin Isn’t Much Of A Goof-ball

Of the two brothers, Taylor is the more serious and stubborn one, like Blake, his younger brother. Blake tends to be much playfully but Taylor was always the one with the knack to be serious. His stubbornness was a bone of contention between him and Marieka when they first got married but they quickly got over their issues and learned to tolerate each other.

4. Taylor Griffin Is His Brother’s Manager

Following an impressive career, Blake Griffin has been ranked as one of basketball’s finest players with impressive talent. As a result, Taylor Griffin has dedicated his time to managing his younger brother and helping him better his skills and talent.

Taylor Griffin, just like any manager would do, give updates about his brother’s state and decisions. He recently told reporters about his brother’s March target which was hampered due to his knee injury and surgery.

5. Taylor Griffin’s Net Worth

Taylor Griffin has a net worth of $6.5 million. Although his career was not as favorable as that of his brother, he obviously earned quite a fortune from it.

However, his brother, Blake Griffin is said to have earnings of $32 million yearly and has a net worth of $110 million.

Complete profile of Taylor Griffin