Jeff Green a great and crucial team player. Why don't more people see this?

[Marcus13]

He's terrible.  The only thing he contributes is fouls and turnovers

[Donoghus]

We certainly seeing both ends of the spectrum here.

Shockingly, the answer lies somewhere in between.  To me, he's been so-so.  Certainly not "great" and certainly not "garbage".  There are some nights where he really seems to have it going and some nights where I think he's disappeared.   You can see the potential there but you have to seriously wonder if he'll ever put it all together at this point.  I mean he's been in the league 4 years now.  At some point, you have to stop looking at potential and see him for what he'll probably is; a NBA rotation guy who can be a starter in some circumstances but probably not a guy you'll ever be asking to be your #1, #2, or possibly even #3 guy.

[Chris]

We certainly seeing both ends of the spectrum here.

Shockingly, the answer lies somewhere in between.  To me, he's been so-so.  Certainly not "great" and certainly not "garbage".  There are some nights where he really seems to have it going and some nights where I think he's disappeared.   You can see the potential there but you have to seriously wonder if he'll ever put it all together at this point.  I mean he's been in the league 4 years now.  At some point, you have to stop looking at potential and see him for what he'll probably is; a NBA rotation guy who can be a starter in some circumstances but probably not a guy you'll ever be asking to be your #1, #2, or possibly even #3 guy.

Agreed.  I think he may get a little bit better, but he is what he is.  He just doesn't have the handle, shot, or demeanor to be a top option.  However, as a middle of the rotation guy, he can be very valuable, and we just have to hope he continues to get more comfortable in his role here as the playoffs go along.  Even though I don't think he will ever be much more than what he is, I do think he has the ability to be much more consistent, and that really is all the C's need from him right now.  Worry about the future later.

[moiso]

I don't know about "great", but he's been solid.

I was hoping he'd come in and provide something simlar to what Posey provided in '07-'08, but he hasn't done that yet.  

Still, very solid.  We'll see if what we have seen so far is all we're going to get, or if he'll continue to grow more into his role off the bench.

He may be more talented but he'll never have Posey's toughness and killer instict.  Not many guys can duplicate what Posey gave us.  I was hoping Green could give us a guaranteed 10-15pts per night off the bench.  I guess I was reaching due to the limited minutes he plays.

[2short]

I don't know about "great", but he's been solid.

I was hoping he'd come in and provide something simlar to what Posey provided in '07-'08, but he hasn't done that yet.  

Still, very solid.  We'll see if what we have seen so far is all we're going to get, or if he'll continue to grow more into his role off the bench.

He may be more talented but he'll never have Posey's toughness and killer instict.  Not many guys can duplicate what Posey gave us.  I was hoping Green could give us a guaranteed 10-15pts per night off the bench.  I guess I was reaching due to the limited minutes he plays.

he's 24
we had the vet posey who did a great job, spot starter and 2 posistion (small ball) player
they are the same guy just different stages of careers, posey was tough to the point of dirty he never had the offensive skill set that young green already has
green so far in the playoffs is looking like a better rebounder than posey was and same good team player that james always showed
for the record james posey didn't guard lebron or kobe well it was pierce

[Kwhit10]

Jeff Green seems like a forgettable player.  When he's out there I really don't notice him.  But he is a team player, he doesn't need the ball, and he will play within the system.  I just hope he improves his shooting and attacks the boards a little harder.

[wdleehi]

Jeff has done Ok given its a new team, new role, new plays,  he  didn't want to be traded , and was TAUGHT to dislike KG and Celtics hard nose ball. He thought he was a long term OKC player I'm sure . Alot of mental adjustment . Mello was chomping at the bit to leave the Nuggets , think it was diff. for Perk and Green.

The more comfortable Jeff becomes with his new teamamtes , his minutes will go up. There is no reason in the playoffs, when PP is playing unhurt and well to force the issue.

 this week off may finally provide the practice time, for the Bench to finally jell . Doc can take time to work out the issues.

The next series is where I'm thinking DA ( thoughts) were for making the trade. PP is going to need help with the HEAT. He wanted a young set of fresh legs to chase LBJ , even if he doesn't score, this rests PP so he can have energy to provide offense.

His defense and rebounds will be critical off the bench to hold the fort , while PP rests.

We'll see alot of Green in the Heat series

Why would the Celtics trade for Green for this series?  The Heat could not beat the Celtics when the rolled the size out there.  Why then get smaller? 





Green needs to play better. 

[Brendan]

Green is one of my least favorite players before the trade. Thought he was vastly over rated in OKC, and thought Presti made a mistake trading Ray Allen and "BBD" for him. (In quotes because you don't know who Presti would have taken.) Considering how West and Wally were discarded rather quickly I think its fair to say the trade was for Green.

On the other hand all the criticisms people make of Green supporters are fair criticisms of Perk supporters. (Whose value to many - like Simmons - was intangible "toughness".) Green went from starting PF on a "bad defense" team, where he was playing with Westbrook and Durant generating most offense, to bench wing where he's expected to provide a lot of the bench's offense and play great D. It's not like baseball where you can step right in. The C's have also not had lots of practice time or everyone healthy during that period. I think in time he'll be a plus as the 6-8th man. His real value is as a starting caliber wing in case something happened to Ray or Pierce.

I think the bigger problem with Green is West and Baby playing bad. If they played like they should, Green is the 8th man not the 6th man.

I'm hopeful a week of practice with a stable rotation gets him more grooved into the team's flow.

[thirstyboots18]

As I have stated before, I miss a lot when I am in the chat, and I am sure you will let me know where I am wrong, but I thought Jeff Green did fine last night, he rebounded and played some defense on Carmelo.  Can he do better?  I hope so.  But he is beginning to fit himself into the second string and be more involved on defense.  I didn't see much offense, but it wasn't needed from him last night...all he had to do was give PP a breather.  He did that, and it paid off.  IMO, Jeff Green will be fine, and will come through for us.  He is getting a little more comfortable in his role.  He has proven to be a capable shooter and scorer, and at some point that will be more important...but with KG, RA and PP on the team it is not so crucial now.  I don't know how many minutes he played last night, but he got at least a half a dozen rebounds and that seems to me to be what we need now.  I'm not particularly  drawn to players who think they are the scoring savior of a team (LeBron, Iverson, etc.)  

Like someone said, it is a hard adjustment going from third scoring option in the starting lineup to the bench on a team with 4 all stars starting, and learning a new systems, with new coach and teammates, while trying not to mess up...Davis has been with the team through a championship  and for years, and he still has trouble with his role...I thought they both played within themselves, and seemed comfortable, last night.  Doc is doing a good job keeping the pressure off until the comfort and trust catch up, and I believe it will happen when we need it.

[Senninsage]

People don't realize what they're saying sometimes. They don't appreciate people who do the little things. How about that play in the 4th quarter, when our very lead and win was at stake, Melo drove to the basket for a layup that nearly went in, and who was there?

Jeff Green. Melo's layup almost went in, then Melo actually got to attempt a quick put back, and which Celtics player was right there with him, bothering him, jumping his heart out to try and take the ball away from Melo?

It was Jeff Green. If Jeff Green loses that battle there against Carmelo, our lead drops even further, and who knows what else happens, or how much more confidence the Knicks might have gotten off that play.

This is straight from the game's play by play. Jeff Green made a very big play for us here. Because it isn't an extra 5 or 6 points on his stat sheet, this gets overlooked? This kind of play is [dang] huge!


     09:57    Anthony Layup Shot: Missed
     09:56    Anthony Rebound (Off:3 Def:5)
     09:56    Anthony Tip Shot: Missed
        Green Rebound (Off:1 Def:5)     09:55    


The key defensive player in this play was Jeff Green, and he out jumped Melo to prevent him from getting that basket, ultimately preventing the Knicks from getting another offensive possession. People are, very foolishly, only judging Jeff Green on the number of points he scores. Nobody is paying attention to the other amazing ways that this guy is helping us out.

So, he had some turnovers. Rondo had turnovers, Ray Allen had turnovers, Glen Davis had turnovers. Garnett has had turnovers. Why do Green's get magnified? There are even arguments that he was fouled in some of those situations, but my point stands. If people don't appreciate the importance of these plays, then they just don't appreciate a good team player.

Jeff Green's heads up play also led to two Garnett free throw attempts on the other end, as well, which Garnett scored. An example of what Jeff Green does, leading to something good for us on the offensive end.

Jermaine O'neal puts it very well.

". It may not always show up on the stat sheet, but I feel that I can really help this team on the defensive end. I can make guys guess when they go to the cup. You almost see guys just looking. But it’s a great group of guys — a brotherhood.”

“I feel good,” he said. “My place with the team is to cover a lot of ground (on defense), and I’m starting to cover a lot of ground. It’s contesting every shot at the basket. Making a guy miss is just as good as blocking a shot.


Jeff Green did that for us on that very important and key possession. Jeff Green's aggressiveness may lead to fouls, but there are plenty of times where it leads to missed shots, or possessions that end up working out in the Celtics' favor.


http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1333013&srvc=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bostonherald%2Fsports%2Fbasketball%2Fceltics+%28Boston+Celtics+-+Celtics+%26+NBA+-+BostonHerald.com%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

[Vermont Green]

I think the bigger problem with Green is West and Baby playing bad. If they played like they should, Green is the 8th man not the 6th man.

I think there is some truth in this.  Now mind you I am not saying that Green is a budding all-star or anything like that, but I believe he can be a fringe starter/rotation player.  The "second unit" is essentially West, David, and Green with Krstic getting minutes here and there.  West and Davis have both looked worse than you would expect, not just Green.  This so called second unit is Davis plus all new players (even West is new because of his injury) and they are just not in sinc.  I sense a trend towards improvement but we are running out of time.

So if Shaq comes back maybe, that would trickle down to allow JO to be part of this second unit (an improvement) plus a week of practice is going to help.  I think it is a big question as to whether this unit is going to "click" and not be a liability against Miami.  We are going to need something better from them.  Miami has their own depth issues which we need to exploit, not the other way around.

[Senninsage]

You know what's become very clear? Glen Davis should not be criticized for taking his mid range jumpers. When he's on, that shot is money for him. But when he misses it, people start saying how he's taking way too many jumpers. Fact is, the guy can make them at a pretty impressive rate.

That doesn't mean he won't mix it up inside, but he can stretch defenses effectively because of that shot. It's one of the primary reasons why Doc likes him out there in late game situations.

[thirstyboots18]

It seems to me if you are looking for your bench to win playoff games for you, your team is in big trouble and won't last long anyway.  

If the bench gives the starters rest without giving the game away you are ahead of the game. I have never heard a championship team state that the bench cost them a game. Bench players should be capable of stepping up and  playing major minutes in case of injury, too...but filling in should be easier because of the quality of the players they will be on the floor with.

[Donoghus]

You know what's become very clear? Glen Davis should not be criticized for taking his mid range jumpers. When he's on, that shot is money for him. But when he misses it, people start saying how he's taking way too many jumpers. Fact is, the guy can make them at a pretty impressive rate.

That doesn't mean he won't mix it up inside, but he can stretch defenses effectively because of that shot. It's one of the primary reasons why Doc likes him out there in late game situations.

It depends on how many and his shot selection when he takes them.  I also think the more his minutes increase (talking 27+ territory), the more he settles for that jumper and its detrimental to the team.  He also has a tendency to continue shooting those shots when its not falling.  That's fine with a pure shooter like Ray but I don't want to see it out of BBD.  

[vinnie]

So just how much is a middle of the rotation player really worth? I say not much.
And, how do you measure toughness? I put Green on the low end of the scale.
And how can Bob Ryan call Green efficient when he scored 24 points on 27 shots in this series?
Finally, has Jeff Green really played like the fifth pick in the draft?

The guy basically has done no more than give Pierce Little rest, and I emphasize little. Pierce averaged 39 minutes per game in a sweep of the Knicks, including 45 in one game. Sounds like a Guy not really getting the job done.

I have never been a Green fan, which is why I was so disappointed when he turned out to be the key guy in the trade.