The NBA trade deadline has now gotten into full swing. On Monday night, one of the biggest trades of the season was made. The Clippers traded Blake Griffin to the Detroit Pistons for Tobias Harris, Avery Bradley, and a number of other players.

Griffin, whom the Clippers signed to a five-year, $173 million deal, was the franchise superstar that the Clippers planned to build around this summer. In just a flash, the Clippers traded him and the move shocked the entire NBA. In fact, Griffin himself seems to be shocked after being traded to the Pistons on Monday night.

The tweet says it all. If Griffin had no indication that he was going to be traded, this will cause quite a stir. To begin, the Clippers hounded Griffin to sign with him, offering him a maximum deal in the summer. Despite his injury-riddled past, the Clippers intended on building around Griffin. Then, they decided to abruptly trade him seemingly with no warning. Next, the Clippers are actually ranked 9th in the Western Conference, despite trading Chris Paul to the Rockets in the off-season. It is puzzling as to why the Clippers opted to trade Griffin when they clearly have a chance at making the postseason.

Next, trading Griffin means that the Clippers plan to rebuild. That usually doesn't happen in the middle of a NBA season. Regardless of the return in the trade, Griffin committed wholly to the Clippers and he was soundly traded with no indication. This is yet another harsh reminder that the NBA is a business first and a fraternity second.