If you spend any time on the corner of the internet that tracks NBA tunnel fits and reality TV cameos, you’ve probably heard the names Blake Griffin and Kim Kardashian mentioned in the same breath. It's one of those celebrity pairings that feels like it should have happened, or maybe it did and we all just blinked?
Honestly, the truth is a lot more "family-oriented" than most people think.
When you dig into the archives of the 2010s, there’s a ton of overlap between the former Clippers star and the Skims mogul. But here’s the kicker: despite what the tabloids might have hinted at during his peak L.A. years, Blake and Kim never actually dated. At least, not each other.
The Kendall Factor (And Why People Get Confused)
The main reason the search for Blake Griffin and Kim Kardashian stays active is because Blake was very much part of the family inner circle for a while. He didn't date Kim; he dated her younger sister, Kendall Jenner.
This went down around 2017. It was a whole thing.
They were spotted everywhere in Los Angeles—Nobu, Craig’s, Staples Center—and it seemed like Blake was the new permanent fixture at the Kardashian-Jenner dinner table. He even showed up to Kendall’s 22nd birthday party, which was a star-studded affair where Kim, Kanye, and the rest of the crew were in full attendance.
Because the sisters are often photographed together and share similar social circles, casual observers frequently mix up which NBA player went with which sister. Kim has her own history with the league—most notably her 72-day marriage to Kris Humphries—but Blake belongs firmly to Kendall’s "Starting Five" (a joke Kim herself actually popularized on a t-shirt recently).
That Viral T-Shirt Moment
Speaking of that shirt, that’s probably the most direct interaction we’ve seen between Blake Griffin and Kim Kardashian in recent years. In 2023, Kim posted a TikTok video wearing a shirt that featured Kendall Jenner surrounded by five of her NBA ex-boyfriends.
Blake was right there on the fabric.
It was a classic Kim move—a little bit of trolling, a little bit of "we're all family here." It confirmed that there’s no bad blood between the family and the retired forward. Most exes of that family end up in a weird limbo of being "banned" or becoming "family for life," and Blake seems to have landed in the "we can joke about this" category.
The Palimony Drama and the Kardashian Curse
It wasn't all just sushi dates and courtside seats, though. Blake’s time in the Kardashian orbit was actually pretty messy. While he was seeing Kendall, his ex-fiancée, Brynn Cameron, filed a high-profile palimony lawsuit against him.
The court docs were brutal.
Cameron alleged that Blake "immediately embarked on a high-profile affair with Jenner" after calling off their wedding. This put the Kardashians—and by extension, Kim, who is usually the family’s unofficial PR strategist—in the middle of a legal firestorm.
People love to talk about the "Kardashian Curse" when players' stats dip after dating a sister. For Blake, the "curse" was less about his jump shot and more about the chaotic timing of his personal life hitting the front page of TMZ. Shortly after things cooled off with Kendall in 2018, he was traded to the Detroit Pistons, effectively ending his "L.A. lifestyle" era.
Why the Rumors Persistent in 2026
So why do we still care? Why is Blake Griffin and Kim Kardashian a topic people still click on?
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Basically, it's the proximity. Blake is funny. Like, actually funny. He’s done stand-up, he’s been on Roasts, and he has a personality that fits the "main character" energy the Kardashians look for in their circle.
- He’s been seen at the same parties as Kim for a decade.
- They share the same high-end plastic surgeons and trainers.
- The NBA-to-Kardashian pipeline is a real cultural phenomenon.
Even though Blake is now officially retired from the NBA (announcing it in 2024), he remains a fixture in the celeb world. You’ll still see him at the Fanatics Super Bowl parties or the Met Gala after-parties where Kim is the guest of honor. They are "industry friends."
What You Should Actually Know
If you're looking for a secret romance, you're going to be disappointed. The connection between Blake Griffin and Kim Kardashian is built on mutual friends and a very famous younger sister.
Kim has always been supportive of Kendall’s choices, and during the Blake era, she was often seen chatting with him at games. But that’s as far as it went. Kim was knee-deep in her marriage to Kanye West during the height of Blake’s time with the family.
The real "tea" isn't a hidden affair; it’s how these athletes navigate the transition from being a "Kardashian Boyfriend" back to just being a basketball player. Blake did it better than most. He didn't let the reality TV noise define his career, even if it did make his personal life a lot more complicated for a couple of years.
Insights for the Fans
If you're tracking the history of these two, keep these points in mind:
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- Check the Timeline: Most "Kim and Blake" rumors are actually mislabeled photos of Blake and Kendall from 2017-2018.
- The "Starting Five" Context: Kim’s 2023 shirt is the definitive proof that she views him as her sister's ex, not her own prospect.
- Social Circles: They still run in the same elite L.A. circles, so seeing them at the same event doesn't mean a "reconciliation" or a new spark.
To stay truly updated on the Kardashian-adjacent world, you're better off watching the background of Kim's Instagram stories during major holidays. That's where the real family-friend crossovers actually happen. If Blake ever shows up at a Christmas Eve party again, then we can start talking. Until then, they're just two of the most famous people in Los Angeles who happen to have shared a dinner table a few times.
To get the full picture of how the NBA and reality TV worlds collided during that era, you should look into the 2018 trade that sent Blake to Detroit. It’s widely cited as the moment the "Kendall and Blake" era officially hit the brakes, proving once again that distance is the ultimate Kardashian relationship killer.