When elite athletes decide to dabble in stand-up comedy, reactions usually fall somewhere between curiosity and skepticism. When Blake Griffin did it, he got something else entirely. A full Russell Peters roast, delivered straight to his face.
Appearing on Byron Scott’s Fastbreak podcast, Russell Peters shared a story that perfectly captures his unfiltered style and Griffin’s willingness to step outside his comfort zone.
“I had met Blake in Montreal at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival, and I was drunk again. So Blake is there and goes, hey man, I’m a big fan. I go, oh cool, wait, but what are you doing here?”
“He goes, I’m trying comedy. I go, really? But you’re a basketball player, right? He goes, Yeah, Yeah. I go, what are you? Because you got red hair, dude. He goes, I’m mixed. And I go, where’d you grow up? I think you grew up in Milwaukee or something? Oklahoma.”
“I go, yeah, so that’s gotta suck being a big half-black kid with red hair in Oklahoma. No wonder you’re good at it. And his face is just like, what the f**k. I’m like, anyway, good luck, stupid. That’s just how I am.”
“So I’m courtside at the Raptors game, and Blake, I think, was playing for Detroit at the time. His back is facing me. I go, Blake, Blake. And he turns around to see me and goes, ah, f**k you.”
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What makes the story land is that Blake Griffin actually did go through with stand-up comedy. Since retiring from the NBA after a 13-year career, Griffin has performed stand-up sets, earned solid reviews, and shown legitimate comedic timing. This is the same player who reinvented his game in Detroit after injuries took away his explosiveness, proving he is not afraid of reinvention.
Griffin has always leaned into humor. From commercials and podcasts to voice acting in The Mitchells vs. the Machines, comedy has been a real interest, not a vanity project. Peters’ roasting him was less a put-down and more a brutal rite of passage. Stand-up comedy is unforgiving, and if you cannot survive a roast like that, you probably should not be on stage.
In the end, Griffin took it exactly how a comic should. With thick skin, a sense of humor, and a well-earned ‘f**k you’ in return.
