Former First-Round Pick Says He’s Leaving NBA ‘to Follow Jesus’ and Become a Minister

A former first-round NBA draft pick is leaving basketball to become a minister.

AJ Griffin, who was selected by the Atlanta Hawks as the 16th pick in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft, announced in a video on Sunday that he is leaving the sport behind “to follow Jesus.”"I gave up basketball to follow Jesus," Griffin said. "And I know that in a lot of people's eyes, that seems like – it seems like a loss in the world's eyes. But I just want to let you guys know that I'm super-excited because I truly get to serve God, you know, with my full ‘yes,’ and I feel like letting go of basketball is allowing me to go into full-time ministry and truly serving the Lord with all my heart, with all my time too, as well. So, I'm just excited to see where that leads me."

Griffin used his seven-minute video to explain his decision and what led to it.

“This decision may seem crazy or abnormal to the world but I’m not here to please man but only my Father in Heaven,” he wrote in the video’s description.

Griffin, who entered the NBA Draft after a standout freshman season at Duke University in 2021, says he “gave his life to Christ in 2020” and “truly accepted” religion during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“He found me,” Griffin smiled as he explained what happened next. “I gave my life to Christ and it was the best decision of my life, it truly was. I think my values started to change, my heart started to change.”

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y up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Griffin, the son of former NBA coach and player Adrian Griffin, said basketball was his whole life prior to discovering religion in 2020. “That was the reason why I was living,” Griffin said, and noted that when he found God, he realized his passion was religion.

In recent years, the basketball star has used his social media platforms to read from the Bible, discuss religion and share motivational religious advice.“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 said in his announcement video, and added, “I want to reach people more through my platforms. I think that sums up my testimony of why I left basketball.”

Griffin was recently traded from Atlanta to the Houston Rockets, where he struggled during the NBA’s summer league season, according to CBS Sports. The Houston Chronicle reported earlier this month that the Rockets bought out Griffin’s contract for $250,000, ending his brief tenure with the team.

Now, it appears, Griffin is moving on from basketball all together.

“Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this journey,” Griffin wrote in his video’s description. “As I step out of one season of my life, I’m excited to step into a new one with my lord and savior.”

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