Riding the hot hand: Jeff Green
Jeff Green drives against a defender |
Ever since Jeff Green signed a new contract with the Celtics over the summer, he has taken us on a whirlwind ride. With incredible highs and lows, no player has made Celtics fans tear their hair out more than him. Green has had an up and down season thus far, and while it is still young, he seems to have found his groove lately.
One of the reasons Green was signed was so he could bolster the offense of the bench, and lately he has really been doing his job. In the past 8 games, Green has scored in the double digits in 5 of them. He has scored in a multitude of ways, off of cuts and lobs, corner 3s, and mid-range jumpers. Drawing free throws, vital to any good offense, is also something Jeff has given us during the past couple games. Green's scoring has been important for a bench that needs an anchor on that side of the ball.
Now I would be doing a disservice to you readers if I just go on only praising Green, so the ugly stuff will not be swept under the rug. Despite his recent success, the chilling fact remains that Green looks exactly like the player he was in Oklahoma City. After you look past his scoring on average efficiency, Green does little else on the basketball court.
While his rebounding has been up the past couple games, so far this season he has been rebounding even worse than his career average (8.1 TRB% this season vs. 9.4% for his career). Using Green as a playmaker has been a disaster, with only turnovers being the result. Green has the BBIQ and skill to make the proper pass without pressure, but putting him in a situation past that is doing a disservice to him and the team. While I think he has looked better on defense so far this season, the stats do not really indicate a change.
Green's roller coaster continues to chug on, and it does not have any indication of slowing down. His contract, inconsistency, and potential make him arguably the hottest player to talk about on the team. Jeff Green is on a great run right now, and the only thing we can do is enjoy it.
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