Blake Griffin: Charge over nightclub incident is a distraction

On Thursday, Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin addressed the misdemeanor battery charge against him.

The charge, which stems from an incident at a Las Vegas nightclub following a preseason game in the city, was first reported Wednesday by TMZ.

Griffin, who was reportedly being investigated for the incident last month, described the situation as a distraction. From the Los Angeles Times:

"No I definitely would not say scary," Griffin said. "I mean, I feel more bad just for the fact that it's a distraction. And I don't know how big of a distraction it really is, but it is. And that's what I feel mostly bad about."

Clippers coach Doc Rivers and point guard Chris Paul also addressed the incident, saying it will not prevent the team from going to Las Vegas for training camp or preseason games.

"We would have liked it to go away but its part of the legal process," Rivers said, according to ESPN.com's Arash Markazi. "We knew it was out there."

Over seven games this season, Griffin has averaged 24.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 0.4 blocks. The four-time All-Star is in his fifth season with Los Angeles since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2009.