While We’re Waiting… Debating the top picks
June 12, 2013Indians 5 Rangers 2: Ding Dong! The streak is dead!
June 12, 2013It was not all that long ago when Danny Green was a street performer who had been afforded the privilege of wearing warm-ups clad with NBA team colors. Selected with the 46th-overall selection in 2009, Green, a four-year player at the University of North Carolina, was to provide depth for the Cleveland Cavaliers as a jack-of-all-trades type player; a kid who didn’t necessarily require the ball in his hands to make an impact, but could play defense, be coached up and make a shot when called upon.
Green was subsequently buried on the Cavaliers bench behind starting shooting guard Delonte West, Anthony Parker and Daniel “Boobie” Gibson. By no means a mis-management of talent, Green was to spend his rookie season absorbing, soaking in what the veterans had to offer. Where things seemed to tilt toward toxic, at least with regard to the early goings of Green’s career arc, was when the Cavaliers merely manhandled their opponents—life was good, the game was easy, the Cavaliers danced and danced. Instead of learning the ropes of what it took to be a professional within the NBA, Green was front and center for every pre-game photo opportunity. While Joakim Noah was sulking on the bench after being the victim of a blowout loss, it was Green, a rookie with next to zero accomplishments at the NBA level, doing the two-step with league MVP LeBron James.
Roughly six months later, Green was left on the dance floor without a partner.
James had vanished to the sun and sand. West had rode off on his Spyder Can-Am. Shaquille O’Neal was a free agent, as was fellow veteran center Zydrunas Ilgauskas. The leadership, gone; the infrastructure, dismantled. A new general manager, a new head coach and a giant state of flux. Meanwhile, Green was a 23-year-old kid who spent the last six months spinning records and was abruptly handed a drum while being told to play Mozart.
The result was not pretty—a cacophony was expected and delivered. Green, playing an an unguaranteed deal due to being a second round selection, looked as if he had to re-learn the game. In the Las Vegas Summer League, Green was a trigger-happy gunner who couldn’t sniff 40 percent from the floor. His first pre-season contest with a job on the line, the second-year swingman provided an 0-for-5 shooting night with two turnovers and two fouls in 22 minutes of play. Following another sub-par contest and what was quite the wake-up call in Camp Scott, then head coach Byron Scott’s notoriously difficult training camp, Green received two-straight DNP-CDs—in the preseason. Rumblings had begun to work their way up: Manny Harris, an upstart, attack-the-rim shooting guard was making moves and turning heads. Harris worked hard and played harder. Poetically, Green’s final bout of playing time in a Cavaliers uniform would come against the San Antonio Spurs. He played six minutes. Harris was given 24. Green’s confidence had evaporated; his locker, emptied.
Three years later, Green finds himself as the leading scorer in the NBA Finals, one of the heroes of a Game 3 dismantling of the reigning champions. The road that paved the way to Tuesday night’s ear-to-ear smiles and a seemingly endless line of high-fives, however, was not a smooth one. Green was picked up by the Spurs after sitting unemployed for roughly one month. He was waived, again, six days later—once again, any team could have given him a shot at retribution. Though added again in the month of March, Green would finish out his second year in the league as a member of the Austin Toros, playing in empty gyms everywhere from Sioux Falls to Rio Grande. Two months after the conclusion of the NBA season, Green found himself playing in the Slovenian Leaugue as a card-carrying member of KK Union Olimpija.
Green was teetering, essentially a few inches away from falling off of a cliff that would leave an NBA career long in the rear view mirror. This was, at least, until Green’s former coach Roy Williams reached out and firmly grabbed his jersey, pulling him back in, giving him a talk that would instill confidence and preach desire. If Green wanted a future in the NBA, he had to work for it. The days of the two-step were over, the music had stopped.
Afforded the opportunity to play for one of the league’s best head coaches within a system that came with increasingly less pressure than his other stops, Green was provided a starting spot with the Spurs, the de facto opening act for one of the best sixth men in the NBA in Manu Ginobili. Green reincarnated himself as a player who could provide a relief valve for San Antonio’s Big Three. As the post would close in on future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, Green was there in the corner for a spot-up three. As teams would attempt to trap Tony Parker’s attempt at a pick-and-roll, it was Green who would find the vacant spot just above the elbow to drain a picture-perfect jumper. The confidence quickly returned and Green was awarded a three-year deal for his what had vacated him in Cleveland.
The Danny Green story is one about the player. It was a moment of poetry on Tuesday night when Green was splashing three-pointers with ease. He hit one from just off of the top of the key, right in the eye of Ray Allen, one of the best three-point shooters in recent history. Seconds later, Green provided relief from a double-team, draining a three-ball over the outstretched arm of Heat guard Norris Cole. Then as his team sat at the 99-point mark, up 18 over the Goliath Heat, Green was fed a pass from veteran Tracy McGrady where he would hit his final three-pointer of the night, his seventh overall, in front of none other than LeBron James. Green danced away while James merely deflated right there on the court.
It is easy to say that the Cavaliers mis-managed Green. Truth of the matter is, Green’s growth and maturity was never going to happen if he stuck with the Cavaliers, a team that was in the midst of turmoil previously unseen. The Spurs, meanwhile, have employed Duncan, Parker and Ginobili for seven-consecutive seasons. Gregg Popovich runs one of the tightest ships in the league and Green needed a trip to his boot camp. Not staying in Cleveland is one of the best things that could have ever happened to Green, whose skill set is undoubtedly more suited to provide a role within an already established system. In Cleveland, Green would have been asked to carry the load. In San Antonio, his role allows for considerable asymmetry—if the Spurs lose, the lights shine on the Big Three; Green, however, can still play the role of the hero.
Anyone who saw Green dancing on the sidelines that celebrated day against the Bulls undoubtedly smiled. They should, however, be even more proud for the former 46th-overall pick for finally finding a place where he could succeed after putting in the time, doing the work, and exerting the effort needed to get back to a place where he had the opportunity to do so.
Cleveland’s place in Green’s story is nothing but a starting point. His Wikipedia page will always link him to the Wine and Gold. Unforunately for Green, he was a member of the Cavaliers when winning was a priority—development of young talent was several places down on the list. Credit to Danny Ferry for believing in Green, giving him a shot once the Cavaliers cut him loose. Credit to the Spurs for having an infrastructure that allows players to appear to be “diamonds in the rough” when in fact they’re strong role players who are given a place on an already-established team. Credit to Gregg Popovich for seeing something in Green that could fit his offense, and instilling the work ethic needed to get to a point where he could be utilized. Credit to Roy Williams for being in the right place at the right time, pulling Green off of the ledge and guiding him back to a level of prominence. But mostly, credit to Danny Green for realizing that things, despite how they look early on when the bass is pumping and the crowd is roaring, may not be as easy as perceived. There are only a finite number of roster spots in the NBA and 60 new ones are given out almost every season. Green could have been another casualty, another name in the books of those who could have been. Instead, he saw the door of opportunity was slightly ajar, kicking it open in front of millions on the biggest stage of them all.
If the Spurs can finish out the series, giving Tim Duncan his fifth title in his illustrious career, one can bet that Green’s dancing shoes will be broken out once again. This time, it will be, as they say, earned and not given.
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(AP Photo/Eric Gay)
75 Comments
Lets get this out of the way: Green isn’t Brandon Phillips, am All-Star gold glover malcontent. He’s not Shannon Brown, a first-round pick buried behind an MVP, traded for pieces that aided in overall success.
…and now, with Joakim Noah certainly sulking on his couch, it is Green, a veteran with few accomplishments at the NBA level, doing the two-step against LeBron James, on his way to one more ring that Noah will ever have.
Well said and well written, Scott. It’s fun to think that the Cavs should have kept Danny Green because of how he’s performing now, but his play towards the end of his time with the Cavs definitely warranted them cutting him loose. No one could have seen this turnaround… not even the Spurs. If so, there’s no way they would have cut him loose by sending him to the D-League allowing other teams to poach him.
Tyler Zeller and Danny Green were teammates at UNC. Just throwin some fun facts your way.
Thank you for making this point. So much of the NBA game is mental. (Exhibit A: LBJ) Circumstance has as much to do with the rise of Danny Green as anything. Still, I hope the Cavs organization is watching this series and learning from it in a multitude of ways. Don’t build a collection of good-to-great NBA players. Build a team. A collection of players can win a title, but great teams build dynasties. I am confident we have a superstar PG in Kyrie. Now get guys that complement his skill set.
I’m left with a couple of big questions… seeing the Spurs play at this level, how do you really draft in the NBA? Do you take the “best player available” or do you take a guy that complements what you already have? A lot of people argue the former. Do the Spurs blow that theory up? Do they cement it?
Also, seeing the Heat play as they have over the past few years leaves me reconsidering the LBJ-era Cavs teams. Maybe they weren’t as bad as I seem to have convinced myself they were. Mo left and wasn’t what he was in Cleveland. Boobie hasn’t been the same since. A lot of those guys aren’t in the league anymore, but I’m starting to realize that that phenomenon may be a symptom of winning teams. Is Danny Green filling it up on a team other than the Spurs? LBJ is praised as being unselfish and having a high basketball IQ, and that was the case in Cleveland too. Now that I’m reflecting on all those times I watched him dribble at the top of the key for 14 seconds before driving the lane in his Wine & Gold… hmm.
I think another huge storyline is the fact that – regardless how little his role is – Tracy McGrady is finally playing in an NBA finals. He was one of the cornerstone NBA players throughout the 2000s. Good to see him finally get a shot at a ring.
Couldn’t be happier for the kid. Came as a star from a big-time program, kept hanging around and remade himself. He wasn’t misunderstood here – he didn’t yet have an NBA-level skill and the smarts to make himself useful.
But let’s not get carried away: he’s been plugged into a well-run system that suits the particular things he’s learned. Like Mike Sanders on Lenny’s teams. He’s still a pieces-parts.
He’s a very good role player in a system that fits his talents to a T. That was never going to be the case in Cleveland. Glad to see he is doing well. Wish it could have been with the Wine and Gold though.
Amazing how the Spurs achieve this kind of thing isn’t it? Despite importing Danny Ferry and Mike Brown from San Antonio Dan Gilbert couldn’t replicate it.
Cleveland is merely the starting point in the Danny Green story…and a possible championship with another team is the ending point!
you always draft the best player at the top of the draft. later in the draft, you look at team-fit. the Spurs (after Duncan) were able to go after guys that fit later in the draft (and take advantage of their Euro-scouts before alot of teams invested heavily there).
we didn’t get to import Duncan (or Pops).
Going out on a limb here by saying they probably would have helped!
Importing Brown allowed us to have a small portion of the equation…the defense was good despite not having a lot of great defenders. Brown’s defensive system was very much a plug and play type of thing.
The offense, the trades and the “drafts” on the other hand…were a completely different story.
You could keep the defense gimmie the rest!
Lebron, Snow, Shannon Brown, Andy, and even Hughes (especially at PG) were all plus-defenders.
where Mike Brown was gifted was finding ways to make guys like Gibson, Gooden, Donyell, D.Jones, and Z (who was limited in mobility) seem like less of an issue on the defensive end. what he did with Wally later against Ray Allen is what cemented that legacy.
Legacy? Good lord first it was Gibson and now Brown! If a team ever wins a championship in this town there will be more legends and legacies then ever.
Lebron became a good defender, Hughes wasn’t bad. Snow was good. Browns was OK. Andy was more hustle grit and energy early on. Our defense was far greater than the sum of it’s parts.
C’mon man…you’re better than that. You have to admit turning a team that has guys like Gibson, Goodson, Donyell, Jones and a mobility challenged Big Z getting big minutes into a Top 10 defense says something about Brown’s ability to coach defense. Brown created a legacy as a defensive minded coach. He cemented that legacy as a defensive minded coach as the seasons progressed. Nobody is saying that he belongs in the hall of fame…but he does have a legacy as a good D Coach. Trying to deflect or deny it is ridiculous on your part.
Oh no…it was LEGENDARY son how else do you think they won that division banner and eastern conference championship?
You’re being ridiculous.
Reputation is the correct word I believe not legacy! The only legacy Mike Brown has is being rehired by a team that fired him after coaching the LA Lakers for a grand total of five games of a four year contract.
Not at all but thank you. Keep setting them up and I’ll keep knocking ’em down! I’m on this like Leonardo DiCaprio on the newest VS model.
Spent some time thinking about this. Decided that the story is always about Cleveland. I can see how it would seem like it wasn’t though sometimes.
Sham, this isn’t fair at all. Brown had bad defenders defending and benched guys that he wanted to start when they didn’t improve or give effort. Hickson, Pavlovic, Jones … he wanted to give those guys significant minutes but nailed them to the bench in tests of wills about their defense. There’s legit things to criticize Mike Brown about but if you’re criticizing his defensive coaching you’re leading a parade of one.
He coached for a year and 5 games on a Lakers squad that Phil Jackson wanted nothing more to do with. He dealt with the most bull-headed star (Kobe) in the league and helped Andrew Bynum to (easily) the best season of his career.
But I don’t really know why I’m trying with you. It’s clear that you have no desire for a legit discussion.
What about Wayne Ellington?
Harv I’m not criticizing Mike Brown at all I’m simply refusing to call his prior tenure or any tenure for that matter a legacy. A legacy belongs to a legend or at the very least someone who has been a champion. The use of the word legacy evokes something entirely more and for me this is not Mike Brown. As I stated earlier the correct word, IMO, is reputation. If you want to say Mike Brown’s reputation as a defensive first head coach then that’s one thing but when you start using words like legacy that’s quite another.
Thank you for more reasons on why not to use the word legacy. They read more like excuses but it’s clear you have no desire for a legit discussion as well.
Harv having bad defenders and improving them is exactly what Mike Brown was rehired to do. You know because Byron Scott was so bad at it and lost his team, supposedly. This is what head coaches do. This is the same guy that will make all of these young guys (Thompson, Waiters, Irving) better based upon the track record you yourself just laid out.
#sarcasm
I am so happy that I used the word legacy and went to a meeting. This is great theater above.
I am somewhat disappointed to not see G_O come in and correct you on your misuse of the term though. Legacy is merely the definition of an era in the context used above.
They don’t even have the same Latin root words (legato for legato/um for legacy and legenda for legend). Far off on this one Sham.
which Brown? Mike or Shannon?
and you are completely misusing legacy. noone said either Brown was a legend. see below.
“I’m simply refusing to call his prior tenure or any tenure for that matter a legacy”
his legacy is what he left behind. it could be good, it could be bad. it just is 🙂
If this is the case I just left about a five pound legacy and let me tell you it wasn’t good!
CHARLIE!
I blame you for this in fact I blame you for all of these discussions I consistently find myself in on here. But it’s okay because much like Chuck Norris I AM A FORCE OF 1! And unlike Oribasi who left, I ain’t goin’ nowhere. I love u guys 2 much!
We all know your meeting was the hour long episode of General Hospital so nice try fella!
And what stats weren’t enough now your broaching into Clive Owen’s brothers area? Ohhhhhhhh boy it’s gonna be on like Donkey Kong!
#GettinSomPopcorn
When did you go all bitter, dude? Last week wasting your energy and precious bodily fluids on a misguided Boobie tirade, and now – you, who never punctuates between independent clauses – calling commenters out on proper word meanings?
Something’s wrong. Is it the uncomfortable deluge of comments today? I get cranky too when there’s too much company all day. C’mon, snap out of it, man. Try 5 affirmations and 5 positive comments here.
Not all bitter still some good left! And please it’s one thing to mention my bodily fluids but to do so along with grammar critiques is quite another. Don’t make me ask you to step outside ‘cuz I ain’t got no problem taking down the old, the weak, the poor or the rest.
I said the news that Jennifer Love Hewitt was not only engaged but pregnant was the start of it but honestly I can’t stand the misrememberings of Gibson and Brown.
And for the record did I not give you props for use of the word halcyon in another thread? I think it was you.
http://www.learnersdictionary.com/search/legacy
2: something that happened in the past or that comes from someone in the past
▪ He left his children a legacy of love and respect.▪ The war left a legacy of pain and suffering.▪ We discussed the country’s legacy of slavery. [=the ways in which the country is still affected by slavery]▪ Her artistic legacy lives on through her children.
Doesn’ts eem so far fetched that we use the word Legacy…just because you have incorrectly associated it with the word “legend” or “legendary” is not our problem.
Who is misremembering Brown in this? We talk up his defense. That’s what he did. It’s what he excelled at. He sucked on offensive coaching…particularly as they related to half-time adjustments. But his defenses were very good. They were a key reason why we won 60+ games in back to back seasons despite only having one legit NBA star on the team (and he hadn’t even hit his peak yet.) Almost everyone else on the roster was clearly on the decline when they joined the team or it was clear after they left that their decline had already started.
Hey when you get to 1,000 posts then you can criticize my use of the word “legacy.” Until then rook I like my boxer briefs with less starch, my donuts glazed, my liquor cheap and my women even cheaper!
On the bright side I got you all lookin’ things up LoL damn I’m good! I’m gonna uptick myself all the way until the Bruins start play tonight in the Stanley Cup Finals against the Blackhawks!
#PuckNight!!!
Get outta my head ‘cuz these are my memories damn you! I knew there was something about you I liked I just had no idea it was witchcraft or is it the FORCE? 😉
And I know your office is in your house too!
LOL – 1000 posts don’t impress me any at all. Just because I haven’t been active here as long as you doesn’t mean I haven’t been active on other sites. 😉
I’ll criticize anyone’s incorrect use of whatever word I so choose. Especially when they’re trying to use such verbage against me. This rook don’t carry pads, buy doughnuts, women or liquor, or do anyone’s laundry other than their own.
I really need to find local friends who like hockey. Because I can’t seem to watch the game on TV…and I don’t quite know the rules enough to want to watch it either.
Those are not the memories you remember. And we are not the ones you are looking for. And yes, I sometimes suffer from Multiple Personality Disorder. And So Do I.
Struck a nerve me thinks I did!
And there are no other sites but WFNY even in Boston where all we do is win freakin’ championships! Okay, maybe that’s pushing it.
Hockey is great c’mon man!
Yes those are the memories I also remember all of those horrible third quarter starts as well as terrible playoff match-ups not to mention this offensive gem, “LeBron you bring the ball up, LeBron you dribble at the top of the circle, LeBron you decide whether to pass or shoot the rest of you guys – Boobies, Donyell, Wally, Damon, Larry, Rickie, Bobbie, Tito, Marlon, Michael and Z you all stand outside the 3 point line and wait should LeBron need to pass. Now go get me that coach of the year trophy!”
Btw I don’t think Scott or Danny Green appreciate you all hijacking this thread!!!!
Actually Hollinger predicted this, almost exactly, out of Green. I’m sure Shamrock will have something completely unclever to say about statheads, but they nailed this one on the head.
Hollinger had Green as the 8th best player in the 2009 draft, a great shooter who could really punish you if you left him open, and more than a solid defender.
The Cavs gave Green all of 115 minutes before cutting him before his age 23 season. There’s a damn good reason why the Spurs snapped him up quickly and gave him a chance, which the Cavs never really did.
The Spurs cut him twice. Let’s not pretend like they knew what they had.