Los Angles Clippers compare Blake Griffin to MLK in recruiting pitch

July 2 (UPI) -- Blake Griffin joined JFK, Martin Luther King Jr., and other icons on a shirt worn by Los Angeles Clippers employees after his free agency meeting.

President Barack Obama, Mohammad Ali, Abraham Lincoln, Gandhi, Michael Jackson and Nelson Mandela were also on the shirt. ESPN reported the recruiting tactic.

The shirt read: "Pioneers" and is now available online for $25.

A source close to the Clippers told ESPN that the shirt was first given to players in the preseason, without Griffin's image, to encourage the team to live like those in the photo.

Griffin, 28, averaged 21.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game in 61 games last season for the Clippers. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft shot a career-high 76 percent from the free throw line.

The Oklahoma product also made a career-best $20.1 million in salary last season.

League sources told The Vertical that Griffin plans to sign a five-year, $173 million deal with the Clippers. He met with the franchise's front office on Friday night.

Griffin also had interest from the Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics. He had surgery in May to repair the plantar plate in his right big toe.