Atlanta Hawks: Season Review: Willie Green
Season reviews presented in alphabetical order. Previously: Jason Collins and Erick Dampier.
The fact that Willie Green was an offseason afterthought, signed-and-traded to the Clippers in what amounted to a housekeeping transaction for the Hawks, shouldn’t overshadow the fact that Green probably ranks second to Ivan Johnson among the team’s unexpected surprises in 2011-12.
The Hawks were keen on Green as soon as the free agency period opened but figured he’d be out of their price range. Green thought the same. But then the post-lockout market was harsh for an undersized, 30-year old shooting guard who had put up middling numbers for his career.
“It was a crazy free agency,” Green said at the time of his signing. “There was a lot of scenarios with players going different places and no one knew where they were going to go. It’s a blessing to be here. I’m excited about the opportunity.”
Green made the most of it by turning in a career year with the Hawks. For the first time, Green was a low-usage, high-efficiency scorer. His 1.04 points scored per possession (on 395 possessions used) ranked 24th in the league, according to Synergy Sports Technology.
That was in large part because Green shot 3-pointers at career-high rate and made them a career-high percentage (excluding 2005-06, when he played just 10 games for the Sixers). Green still didn’t draw many fouls but he had a great year at the free-throw line, too, missing just eight of 56 attempts.
Green proved to be a good fit playing off the ball and spotting up for shots in the half court and in transition, or catching and shooting off screens. That role also allowed him to continue to cut his turnover rate and percentage.
Defensively, Green was too slow-footed to handle particularly athletic opponents and too small to fend off stronger players. That’s reflected in his individual numbers: .91 points per possession allowed (276th in the league, according to Synergy) and 15.9 opponent PER at shooting guard. However, Green proved to be a decent team defender when properly deployed as reflected by the efficiency of the top four lineups in which he played.
Green couldn’t carry over his play into the postseason, which made him like pretty much every Hawks reserve. He struggled to create shots, didn’t attempt a free throw in 63 minutes and was a defensive liability.
Overall, Atlanta’s acquisition of Green turned out to be a good, cost-efficient move. In what may be a sign of the new NBA world of fiscal restraint when it comes to role players, Green’s good year apparently didn’t translate into the kind of lucrative contract regularly offered to scorers. According to Hoopsworld’s Eric Pincus Green’s first-year salary with the Clippers is $1.375 million, just a bit more than the league minimum, and the final two years are not guaranteed.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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191 comments Add your comment
Rod from College Park
August 25th, 2012
6:36 pm
Slimjr,
“They played an intense super critical role in over coming Orlando for the 1st time in years thanks to their fantastic clutch shooting performances in that series..Yes the Bigs played an important role to help keep D12 in check but of course but those two have to be singled out and given game balls…”
You were correct originally Slimjr. Jamal and Joe won that series for us. They were are two leading scorers. Dwight averaged 28 ppg in that series against us. We were able to keep the other guys in check because we stopped doubling. If not for Joe and Jamal, mainly Jamal we lose that series.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFkNk-vs5DI
Rod from College Park
August 25th, 2012
6:44 pm
More highlights to prove your point Slimjr. Another game in that series.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alkaMsE92S0&feature=related
Slimjr
August 25th, 2012
6:49 pm
Rod, this maybe Ice Melts last season with the Fal-cons as the featured starter..He’s got 8x the weapons that MV7 had and is not going to get it done in the playoffs again..Sounds like a broken record?
Took two more sacks from one of the worst teams in the NFL?
Bradley predicts 12-4! Hahahahahahahaha. I told him about those Baths Salts on his blog…..
Last Year Peter King had em winning the SUPER BOWL??????????? Hahahahahah
Oh these poor Fal-con fanatics…Sorry……
Mr Blank is in shop mode for a new stadium. He better be in the same mode for a Starting QB?
steven a smith
August 25th, 2012
6:50 pm
We will miss Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams. NOT!!! That was very “therapeutic”. I truely enjoyed that one. Now i can return to my Fantasy Football Draft. If we could only send a few more “Hawk Scrubs” to Utah, my summer will truely have been Superb.
Slimjr
August 25th, 2012
6:54 pm
“You were correct originally Slimjr. Jamal and Joe won that series for us. They were are two leading scorers. Dwight averaged 28 ppg in that series against us. We were able to keep the other guys in check because we stopped doubling. If not for Joe and Jamal, mainly Jamal we lose that series.” -Rod from CP-
Thanks Rod for the back up.. I’m not looking for a fight with doc.. LOL!
Eyeballs win over “nimbers”..Dang I forgot D12 still put up 28 per night! Wow!
You guys are much better equipped than me.. I’m a lover not a fighter…Hahahahahah…
Slimjr
August 25th, 2012
7:00 pm
Rod, some of those threes should be and ones? The defense is not allowing him to land without contact down low..Darn ref’s!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Slimjr
August 25th, 2012
7:02 pm
I’m convinced that we would have beat Boston in 5 if JC1 was still lighting it up for our Hawks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks Sund!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SteveW
August 25th, 2012
7:04 pm
AJ – Trust me, I’m not advocating trading Devin either – unless Ferry had something he felt would improve the team. I like Devin Harris.
Interesting starting 5 you propose there. I’m not sure how many games that squad would win – 35 sound about right – but you would have 3 guys with a legit shot at a 20+ PER starting, and Teague and Ivan as helpers – we could do worse I’m sure.
Slimjr
August 25th, 2012
7:08 pm
For the right deal I would advocate trading Al. But I want at least a #1-4 pick in next years draft too!
If Rev is right it maybe down hill from here? Hmmmmm
brigadierjerry
August 25th, 2012
7:38 pm
Martell Webster signed with the Wizards? Wow. You know the Hawks get trashed a lot for taking Marvin Williams at #2, but no one ever trashes the Blazers for trading down and picking this bum over the likes of Chris Paul and Deron Williams.
I got to see Webster play for the T-wolves this past year. Other than his hair looking like Coolio’s, there was nothing about Webster that stood out. What a bust. He still has time to become a decent player I suppose, but there is no way the Blazers should ever be able to live down that terrible deal.
KevinM
August 25th, 2012
9:11 pm
James Anderson is part of the SA system and we will see if has an added advantage to earn a roster slot. I always thought we should have drafted him out of OSU, but he really hasn’t been able to do anything to force Pop to play him in the rotation. He played a total of 32 playoff minutes and that was in 8 games.
Its time for him to start making an impact if he wants to stay in the league. Not a bad FT shooter, but you gotta get there plenty of times to make an impact.
Sautee
August 25th, 2012
9:11 pm
hey jerry,
FYI: Webster was picked 6th, so he wasn’t before CP3 or Deron. Still an awful pick, though.
Sautee
August 25th, 2012
9:14 pm
ok jerry, my bad. They traded down.
dap01
August 25th, 2012
9:16 pm
Season review on Willie Green? Seriously?
AG
August 25th, 2012
9:37 pm
I guess MC wrote all those season reviews and will publish them all – even if they print into the season…. or MC just didn’t feel like writing anything and just published something he previously wrote. ESPN had several good articles on the Hawks, one even rated them 2nd in the East. At this stage of the game I certainly prefer better articles on existing players (like the Lou Williams piece or the Devin Harris/Jeff Teague article.)
I agree with Grandad, we can sum up the reviews on Stack, Pargo, TMac and Damp (the other scrubs I think we covered already:
They came/ they played poorly/ Thank goodness they are gone!
brigadierjerry
August 25th, 2012
9:45 pm
Sautee,
No problem sir. I know Hawks get treated badly for that draft but Portland is just as guilty that year as well.
One thing I have noticed the coverage at least national media on the Hawks seem to be getting more favorable. Even the article that predicted Hawks second in the East which I dont think will happen when was the last time you seen an article written about the Hawks like that?
Sautee
August 25th, 2012
9:54 pm
Yeah, Ferry has already begun changing the attitude towards the organization. That won’t last too long, though, unless we win. We probably get a bye from the press until after next summer.
O'Brien
August 25th, 2012
10:05 pm
I’m not as high on Matt Ryan as the organization and the media is. But imo, even if he loses again in the playoffs, who are we going to get to play QB?
We don’t have a high enough draft pick to get a franchise QB, so are we willing to spend a late first round pick on one, and hope he develops? And we don’t have the money in free agency to sign a top level QB either.
If Matt Ryan struggles again in the playoffs, then (imo) the only consequence will be he will sign for less money on his next contract with the Falcons.
Plus Mike Smith will be fired before Matt Ryan is let go, so Smitty is the one on the hot seat this year (imo).
Buddy Grizzard
August 25th, 2012
10:10 pm
“It still does not change the fact that they played together and Iverson was a better offensive player than Josh or Horford.”
They played on the same team when either A. Lou Williams was an unheralded second round pick not getting a lot of minutes or B. Iverson was washed up. Despite playing “on the same team” as Iverson, Lou Williams didn’t spend a lot of time playing “with” Iverson because they play the same position and have the same role.
By the time Williams was drawing the attention of defenses, Iverson was no longer a factor. Lou will ideally play every game this season “with” Josh and Al. Unlike Iverson, Williams will spend a substantial amount of court time with Josh and Al. Sure he got to sit on the bench and study Iverson’s moves and go against him in practice. Occasional garbage time when Philly could afford to have two undersized shooting guards on the court at the same time is not what I had in mind when I said “played with.”
O'Brien
August 25th, 2012
10:16 pm
Jerry, sautee,
Portland gave up the 3rd pick to Utah, but in return they got the #6 pick, the #27 pick, and a 2006 first round pick. So even though the Webster pick was terrible, they did get other assets from Utah. Plus later in the draft, they traded with Denver for Jarret Jack, so they still got a PG.
The Hawks get a hard time for taking Marvin because 1)We had a bunch of wings on the team already 2) We badly needed a PG 3) We gave CP3’s backup huge money to come here (he stayed hurt) and 4)We resigned Marvin for 5 years, $37.5 mil (Webster resigned with Portland for 4 years, $20 mil) and couldn’t get rid of Marvin until now
doc
August 25th, 2012
11:06 pm
slimj you are always a gentleman and accomidating.
anyway al led us in assists in that series, dont choke and kirk had a tremendous series shooting lights out in the clutch when he needed to doing over 50% on both threes and from the field and rang up a few assists himself. i hear some serious coughing now. meanwhile, jj was his ordinary self from the field and three land and josh earned the title osh for his lack of aim for threes missing his j, but guard play it was not based on how few points were scored. again, jamal was awesome but overall it was a very team earned series. dont think it is fair to short change the many individual contributions in that series.
AG
August 25th, 2012
11:29 pm
I read a little earlier as one of the bloggers thinks we have a lottery team. Again – a closer look to compare this year as last year certainly reveals this team is better than last year – even if they do not make a trade for a SF.
PG Teague > Teague Although their are bloggers who believe Harris will start over JT0 – I strongly disagree. This season he will have an opportunity to really be a go to player. He scoring numbers will increase and now when he drives, he will have plenty of knock down shooters who knock down shots.
SG Williams Williams I like the expiring contract and Morrow’s salary. Although Marvin is 4″ taller, the Hawks were 23rd in the league in rebounding. Morrow is a career 2 rebound player – so expect the Hawks to be considerably worse.
PF Smith > Smith Although Josh had a career year, in the six games without Joe, the Hawks were 4-2. Smith games were: 13 pts 7 rbs (loss)
22 pts 12 rbs
24 pts 19 rbs
30 pts 12 rbs
27 pts 9 rbs
23 pts 6 rbs (loss)
With the marketing team preparing a major PR push around the hometown hero, expect Smith to finally reach the 20 ppg. plateau and shoot a higher percentage as now he will be depended upon to camp under the basket.
All-Star Al > All Star ZaZa Oh wait, has ZaZa been voted to, earned, elected or even chosen by coaches to any all-star team in the U.S? Did he even get at least 1 vote in? Even ZaZa’s career average of 7.8 ppg and 7.9 rbs and .5 blocks outshine Al’s career 12/7 high school, college and career average! Certainly my good friends on the blog like steven a smith will tell you our average ‘All-Star’ should be our backup to our non-star ZaZa. I disagree. Al will average more than 15ppg and grab at least 10 rbs. and far outshine the production we got out of center.
The reserves
Harris > Pargo Why even waste time with this comparison?
Jenkins= Greeen I actually liked Green – and if he would have hit that shot in game three, he may still be on this team. I did like what I saw in the Summer Leagues from Jenkins and I think he will be a major contributor off the bench this season..
Korver > TMac Okay in short burst I would prefer TMac. He did every blue moon show he still had it. Yet, Korver will be a little more consistent. He played in 65 games and averaged 8 ppg in 22 minutes off the bench.
Ivan> Ivan In his second NBA stint, I would not be surprised if he started at SF. He averaged 6.4 ppg and 4 rbs in only 56 games and 16 minutes. At 6′8″ 255 – he certainly is big enough to give us some extra help on the boards in the starting lineup.
ZaZa > Collins/Damp The local IHOP’s management team and franchise owners were the only two unhappy about watching these two leave town. I am not the biggest ZaZa fan, but those two combined make ZaZa look like Kareem!
The rest
The garbage guys (Benson, Scott, Stevenson, Petro, WIlliams ) is a little worse than (Vlade Rad, Stack, Damp). Yet, these guys should not impact the game in any way other than injuries
AG
August 25th, 2012
11:42 pm
last post…. a little wife distraction… let do a revision
SG Williams < Johnson Lou is giving up 6" 65 lbs – and was outscored last year 18.8 -14.9. Joe also out rebounded Williams 3.7 to 2.6. The biggest difference is JJ is scheduled to make 19 mil, Williams 5 mil. For that one reason alone – I would prefer Williams. With Hinrich starting at SG, I would give Williams the edge.
Grandad
August 25th, 2012
11:53 pm
ntrigue
I watched every SummerLeague game in it`s entirety.
K.benson played well;
not great, or eben exceptional, but [well] in the 1st game.
Evidently he was out of gas.
He went downhill each game thereafter.
Understanding that his competition was rookies and D-Leaguers;
it was not enough to only play well or [average].
He needed to excell.
Plus, he needed to do so in all five games, not just one.
I`m not trying to contradict your evaluation.
I`m only calling it as I see it.
I wanted to see KB be an assailant of sorts,
both defensively and on the glass.
However, game by game, he became more and more deferential
and apathetic.
ntrigue – Please understand;
I really liked benson coming out of college.
I wanted him on the team last yr as opposed to Collins.
*[and later Dampier]
I was really pullin` for the guy.
I just didn`t see it.
Evenin`,
G-dad
Grandad
August 25th, 2012
11:56 pm
or * [eben]* exceptional,
obviously – should have been … *’`even`’*
AG
August 26th, 2012
12:01 am
I thought he played well. He was dominate and instrumental in the first win. He maybe had one poor game. Other than that, he had a really soft touch. There is an upside with the kid, rather then getting another high-mileage retread.
EmirS.
August 26th, 2012
5:19 am
Really MC…Willie Green?
Moving on….can someone explain to me, in Basketball terms, the Red Sox and Dodgers trade? Like the significance of it and the caliber of the players sent to the two opposing teams. Everyone’s making a big deal out of it but I just plainly don’t understand it. One of the journalist on espn.com called it “something that has never been done before.” That caught my attention. Anyone?
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
6:15 am
Emir….Boston sent 4 veteran major leaguers (ranging from a solid role player to former MVP candidates) along with $11M in cash to the Dodgers for an avg major league 1st baseman and 4 prospects. What makes it so unique is that the guys Boston sent are scheduled to make over $250M over the next 5 or 6 years.
You can’t really compare it to basketball because baseball has no salary cap (they don’t have to match salaries), but I’ll try. Imagine the Hawks trade off all of their long term contracts this year, and then next summer Boston decides to start over, so they trade Paul Pierce, KG, Bass, and Jason Terry to the Hawks for a 1st rd pick (except double the # of years on each of the Boston guys’ salaries). Same kind of star power. Same kind of age and declining skills. Huge salaries.
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
6:32 am
Crawford is the guy that makes that deal so unbelievable. Going in to next season, he’ll be roughly 32, coming off of Tommy John surgery, OPS’ing in low .700’s over his two years in Boston while missing 150+ games, and is set to make over $100M in his next 5 seasons.
Gonzalez is a year younger and more productive than Crawford, but he’s due $120M+ over the next 6 years.
Jae Evolution
August 26th, 2012
6:37 am
Didn’t realize this guy James Anderson was so young or was even in the 2010 draft, but Danny makes up for yet another Sund mistake. Back when we shipped out 2 picks in Crawford and our ‘11 pick for…nothing? Now we have a guy who can come in start at SF, SG whatever he does he has the size to play either position can shoot, slash and play D. I think some will be pleased with what James is able to show us in a system that doesn’t limit him to corner three’s.
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
6:52 am
Spurs are supposedly looking at trading Dejuan Blair & Gary Neal to Houston for Patrick Patterson, but Houston (again supposedly) wants to move Blair to a 3rd team for a draft pick. Hawks have the Willie Green trade exception that could absorb Blair’s salary. Hawks have Houston’s 1st and 2nd rd picks (both protected). Any idea how much longer Blair’s knees will hold up? Anyone willing to give up a pick to find out?
ntrigue
August 26th, 2012
9:08 am
@Grandad
I saw every summer league gm too and I disagree with your observations. I think Benson had only 1 bad gm and that was only on the offensive end otherwise I think he and Jenkins were the best two players by far. Benson earned a chance to show if he can hang with the big boys in training camp. I think he is ready to contribute off the bench now. I’ll post his gm numbers later on.
steven a smith
August 26th, 2012
10:10 am
ntrigue
August 26th, 2012
9:08 am
Agree. keith Benson appears he would be the 2nd best defender if he were on the “Active” Atlanta Hawks Roster. I DVRed several Hawk Summer League games and Benson had better than average instincts.
5th in the East...again
August 26th, 2012
10:45 am
Does the Anderson signing mean Stevenson is out? If so another big trade could be looming.
Ken Strickland
August 26th, 2012
1:43 pm
Willie Green had a career yr with us last yr. And yet, in LWilliams, DHarris, AMorrow, KKorver, and maybe even JJenkins, we have 5 players with the potential to equal or exceed his production if given the mins. Adding center JPetro, and possibility KBenson to go along with Zaza, will definitely increase our overall depth and production at OC, especially our rebounding and DEF ability.
Grandad
August 26th, 2012
2:25 pm
Season in Review … Tracy McGrady:
According to ’synergysprtstech’ he was hurt alot.
-then-
He pissed in LD`s corn flakes,,,,,and that was that.
-oh yeah-
He had that one Big Game vs Miami early on;
and reminded us he once was a great player !
____________________________________________
-coming next-
…Marvin…
-tonite or tomorrow-
Rusty
August 26th, 2012
2:30 pm
I really liked KB in the summer games also Scott. Also thought Jenkens looked terrific.,he should get a lot of minutes.
BIG DOG
August 26th, 2012
2:49 pm
Al Horford for Andrew Nicholas, I BE DAM
What world is earth coming 2.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
BIG DOG
August 26th, 2012
2:53 pm
Dion Glover AVG 22 points in summer league, SMH
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
glw
August 26th, 2012
5:17 pm
BIG DOG
August 26th, 2012
2:49 pm
Al Horford for Andrew Nicholas, I BE DAM
What world is earth coming 2.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
******************************************************
I got a good laugh at that too Big Dog, are people that desperate to get rid of Al for a rookie. He might turn out to be good, but he is just as likely to be no more than a journeyman roleplayer. And if the Hawks would do that deal Josh would definitely walk next year.
Astro Joe
August 26th, 2012
5:27 pm
Just Joe, I’d like Blair but not for anything other than a 2nd round pick (and the Willie TE). He has one year left on his contract, so he would be a very good one year rental and may help these 17 guards run if he maintains his usually high rebounding rate.
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
6:22 pm
AJ…do you think the Hawks are willing to trade picks for role players at this time? I would, but as a fan, I tend to be more short sighted. Does Ferry even care if the roster is out of balance this year, or will he simply hold the best 15 players he can get his hands on (even if 12 are shooting guards)?
Ken Strickland
August 26th, 2012
6:26 pm
All of you HORFORD HATERS were dead wrong when you thought JSmith would walk if we didn’t acquire DHoward. None of you eever thought about what he’d do if we traded AHorford, especially for anyone other than Dwight. Some of you are so damned stupid that you think everyone else shares your stupidity. And you seem to think, in you can call what some of you fools do and say the result of any thought process, that all NBA players should share your stupdity as well.
I guess that’s why you either ignore or admonish all of the NBA players, coaches, and writers who have a completely opposite opinion of Horford, his accomplishments, potential and abilities. You’re too stupid to realize there’s a reason Horford, rather than Josh, has been given the awards and recognition he’s received.
Horford and Josh make a very good tandem. They are both very athletic and play much bigger than their actual height and size. The specific skills and abilities of our new backcourt rotation will make it much easier for them to function around the lane and without the constant threat of double teams and zones.
This whole attitude and fear about our lack of ideal size reminds me of a NCAA title gm between Michigan State and UCLA back before most of you were probably born. Michigan was one of the tallest teams in the nation with 6′7″ SG Cazzie Russel. UCLA starting center was the only player taller than 6′5″.
When asked what they would do against a much taller and bigger oppohent, the UCLA players said they weren’t the ones that had to carry around all of that height and size. Needless to say, UCLA wore them down and won the NCAA title that yr by using superior speed, quickness, and athleticism to compensate for their lack of height and size. The Hawks will use those same attributes, along with excellent long range shooting ability, to have a very good season and playoffs.
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
6:44 pm
Ken…did Josh sign an extension or something?
coach roy
August 26th, 2012
7:03 pm
sg-sf james anderson out of oaklahoma st. draft class 2010 the number 20 pick in the first round by spurs.
Just Joe
August 26th, 2012
7:11 pm
How in the world will LD manage the minutes of Teague, Harris, Williams, Morrow, Jenkins, Stevenson, Korver, and Anderson….especially when we play the Lakers and Sixers, and Josh plays a lot of SF?
I predict a lot of locker room issues surrounding playing time and shot selection.
KevinM
August 26th, 2012
7:27 pm
Stickland is losing any tact he used to have. The Horford detractors just get under your skin.
And this isn’t college; NO BOYS ALLOWED!
And for those who love Benson thinking he will contribute:
Keith Benson = Solomon Jones V 2.0
Benson isn’t getting us past the 2nd round…..neither is Blair, who isn’t even as good as Big Baby.
steven a smith
August 26th, 2012
7:32 pm
KevinM
August 26th, 2012
7:27 pm
If keith Benson is a “C’ player, Slomomn Jones was an “F” Player. Benson allready ways ahead of solomon Jones.
KevinM
August 26th, 2012
7:36 pm
James Harden scenarios a topic of discussion on cnnsi…includes a sceanrio to the Hawks…sounds like a reach at best…..Lou and multiple picks……
steven a smith
August 26th, 2012
8:13 pm
James Hardin would be “Ok” at 5 year $40mill/per. I would not go over 9 mill/per because of his weaknesses.