Last season, Green continued his career-long trend of providing instant offense off the bench with his above-average marksmanship from deep. The 33-year-old drained 35.4 percent of his long-distance attempts -- his fourth season in the last five with at least a 35.0 percent success rate from behind the arc. Green wasn't exactly efficient overall -- he shot just 40.0 percent from the field -- but that's never been his calling card. The long-tenured wing, who signed with the Rockets for a third straight season, offers some decent rebounding ability, but his main fantasy contributions will continue to be in offensive categories. As a reserve who heavily relies on three-point accuracy, Green's production will naturally see its fair share of fluctuation. However, as he demonstrated last season, he's capable of stringing together a series of strong offensive outputs when he gets a hot hand. During the 2018-19 campaign, that even included a trio of 20-point performances off the bench, and he also sandwiched a stretch of 10 double-digit scoring efforts over a 15-game period around the All-Star break. Looking ahead to the 2019-20 season, Green is likely to reprise the bench role that's afforded him over 20.0 minutes per contest over each of the previous two years while backing up both the shooting guard and small forward positions.
After being waived by the Bucks following training camp, Green struggled to find interest elsewhere in the league until the Rockets came calling roughly two months into the season at the end of December. Green was only expected to be a short-term add to help cover some injuries, but he ended up impressing once given an opportunity and ultimately earned a fairly sizable role in the regular rotation. His three-point shooting, specifically, helped him fit in with the Rockets uptempo barrage and he wound up hitting a career-high 2.7 three-pointers at a 36.9 percent clip. He added 12.1 points across 22.7 minutes, but didn't chip in much elsewhere, which limited his utility in most leagues. With both Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Corey Brewer departing in free agency, there could be a few extra minutes available on the wing. However, Carmelo Anthony and James Ennis were added to the roster and will likely limit a potential uptick in playing time to just a minor gain. Look for Green to battle Ennis for minutes as a reserve wing and if he does end up with a similar workload, he'll simply be a three-point specialist in deeper leagues.
Green has come full circle as he prepares for his 10th NBA season, rejoining the Celtics franchise that made him the 18th overall pick out of high school in 2005. Green has bounced around between eight NBA teams over his career, most recently appearing in 69 games (14 starts) for the Heat last season. He averaged 8.9 points and 2.4 rebounds per game but struggled with his shot, converting just 39.2 percent of his field-goal attempts and 32.3 percent of his three-point attempts. While Green is on the wrong side of 30, his jaw-dropping athleticism hasn't seemed to dissipate, which lends well to his abilities as a versatile wing defender. The question will be whether he can crack a deep Celtics rotation already stocked with capable two-way players. Green, who signed a veteran's minimum deal to join the Celtics, will be in the mix for time at both shooting guard and small forward, but he'll have to contend with Jaylen Brown, Jae Crowder, Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart for minutes in what will likely be a deep rotation.
Green followed up his breakout 2013-14 season with a somewhat disappointing 2014-15 campaign as a result of a minutes reduction. In 74 games with the Suns last season, Green finished with averages of 11.9 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 20 minutes per game. Additionally, he was far less accurate shooting the ball, shooting just 42 percent from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc. As he enters his ninth NBA season on a one-year contract with the Heat, Green is expected to have a similar role off the bench, as he will be fighting for time with Miami's various shooting guards and small forwards. Regardless, Green should be able to provide a good spark off the bench for the team, as he has simply come to be a scorer at this point in his career. Green used to rely on his overwhelming athleticism to score the basketball near the rim, but he has now developed into an effective slasher and a somewhat reliable jump shooter. However, the high flyer is not expected to contribute much else in other areas, so his fantasy value will rely entirely on his scoring ability on a given night, which has proven to be both very hot and very cold at times.
Green is entering his eighth season in the NBA and his second with the Suns. Filling in for the injured Eric Bledsoe last season, Green finally seemed to live up to his enormous potential after bouncing around the league for a few years. Green averaged a career-high 15.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 0.9 steals in 28 minutes per game. He shot 45 percent from the field on 12.3 attempts with a 40-percent mark from three on 6.2 attempts. Green also chipped in a solid percentage from the free-throw line with an 85-percent mark on 2.8 attempts. With Eric Bledsoe expected back healthy, Green will probably return to a bench role this season but could still carry some value as a three-point specialist. The extended minutes he saw last season will likely not be as readily available, but if given the opportunity, he's proven capable of scoring in bunches. Unfortunately, Green doesn't contribute much else outside of scoring, three-pointers, and the occasional steal. He's definitely draftable in deeper formats, but better options are usually available out of the gate in standard leagues.
A journeyman forward, Green has spent time with six NBA teams and also played in Russia for two seasons. For someone of his experience, he is still a relatively young man at 27 years old. Having never started more than 26 games in a season, the 6-8 swingman should be expected to log at least 20 minutes per contest. Limited range on his jumper has prevented Green from becoming the star he was expected to become as a first-round draft pick of the Celtics. He must improve upon his 31 percent shooting from long range to earn and keep a starting position.
The Pacers are believers in Green, handing him a three-year contract. After he played himself out of the NBA three years ago, Green re-surfaced last season in New Jersey, and appears to have used his exile to become a better professional, showing a better outside shot than we’d seen before. It’s hard to tell if Green is a team-first convert who shed his individualistic ways, or if he was merely able to thrive on a Nets team that wasn’t very good. We’ll certainly learn this season, as the Pacers want him to be the first wing off the bench.
The former dunk champion was brought in to give the team athleticism and youth and could end up playing heavy minutes if his basketball IQ can improve. Green looked impressive in the Rocky Mountain Revue averaging 17.7 points en route to earning All-Revue honors. After having stumbled in Boston, Minnesota and Houston, this may be Green's last shot at proving he's an NBA-caliber player.
Green has the opportunity to break out in Minnesota this season. He is currently one of several young swing men on the Wolves, including Corey Brewer and Rashad McCants, competing for playing time behind Ricky Davis. The Kevin Garnett trade suggests that the Wolves are in a full-blown youth movement rebuild, though, so it is likely that Green has a chance to grab a starting spot even ahead of a vet like Davis. Green averaged almost 16 points and 1.8 treys per game in 26 starts with the Celtics last season, and with his athletic ability one would expect him to eventually improve on the 3.6 boards per game he grabbed as a starter. He’s definitely worthy of mid-to-late round sleeper status.
Green's numbers from last season are not all that impressive, but his per 48 are. The rookie guard averaged 21.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists for every full game he played last season and is very likely to improve upon his 11.8 minutes a night this season. If he can grab 20-25 minutes there will be some significant ownership across most fantasy formats.
Danny Ainge has shown he is not afraid of taking high school players and was stunned to see Green there at 18. He only worked out for seven teams and all were picking in the top 10. Green's athleticism, quickness, ball-handling skills, ability to penetrate and deep range on his jumpshot has drawn him favorable comparisons to Tracy McGrady or Reggie Lewis. Doubters will question his weight (200 pounds) and maturity, but that is most always the case with high school players. Green should progress well under Doc Rivers, who succesfully integrated fellow high-schoolers Al Jefferson and Kedrick Perkins into a playoff rotation.
Danny Ainge has shown he is not afraid of taking high school players and was stunned to see Green there at 18. He only worked out for seven teams and all were picking in the top 10. Green's athleticism, quickness, ball-handling skills, ability to penetrate and deep range on his jumpshot has drawn him favorable comparisons to Tracy McGrady or Reggie Lewis. Doubters will question his weight (200 pounds) and maturity, but that is most always the case with high school players. Green should progress well under Doc Rivers, who succesfully integrated fellow high-schoolers Al Jefferson and Kedrick Perkins into a playoff rotation.
