Cavaliers Continue Offseason Construction; Ink Veteran Small Forward
After dropping the Finals in five games this past June, it seemed like Bobby
Womack wasn’t the only native Clevelander who left his heart in San Francisco.
Less than a month removed from the end of the Wine & Gold’s recent run, it seems
like some fans and pundits have already forgotten just how close the Cavaliers
came to making Golden State sweat out an even series heading back to Cali after
Game 4.
The Cavaliers led the Warriors by six points with three minutes to play in Game
3 of this past Finals. Had they been able to close that contest out, and
considering the beating they gave the Dubs in Game 4, the series might have gone
a completely different direction.
Of course, it did not. And the Cavaliers find themselves re-tooling this
offseason – shoring up not just for Golden State, but the rest of the league
that’s now in hot pursuit of – and gaining quickly on – both Finals combatants.
On Monday, the Cavs officially announced the signing of backup point guard Jose
Calderon – fortifying a roster spot that’d been a question mark through the
better part of the previous season.
On Tuesday, the team unveiled another veteran free agent acquisition in forward
Jeff Green.
After starring for three seasons at Georgetown, Green was originally drafted by
the Celtics with the fifth overall pick of the 2007 Draft before being
immediately shipped to Seattle in the blockbuster deal that brought Ray Allen
and Big Baby Davis to Boston in exchange for Green and our old friends, Wally
Szczerbiak and Delonte West.
Jeff Green is no stranger to postseason play – doing playoff tours with the
Thunder, Celtics, Grizzlies and Clippers. In Boston’s six-game First Round loss
to J.R. Smith’s Knicks back in 2012-13, Green averaged 20.6 points per. Photo by
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images
In his rookie year, he and his fellow freshman teammate, Kevin Durant, were both
named to the All-Rookie First Team. Green averaged 10.5 points per in his first
season with the Sonics and as the team relocated to Oklahoma City, he remained
the model of consistency – posting double-digit scoring in eight of his first
nine seasons in the league.
Green’s best year came in his second season after being traded back to Boston
(along with Nenad Krstic in exchange for Nate Robinson and another old friend,
Kendrick Perkins) – starting all 82 games for the Celtics in 2013-14, averaging
16.9 points per.
Like Calderon, Cleveland’s other offseason acquisition, Green – who spent all of
last season with Orlando – isn’t the flashiest player in the Association. But
the Cavaliers have plenty of flash up and down the roster. What they need are
consistent veterans to fill the gaps that Golden State exploited earlier this
summer.
Green is the perfect jack-of-all-trades backup for LeBron James. He’s a career
43 percent shooter from the floor; 33 percent from long-range. The Maryland
native has been a solid rebounder (4.7 rpg) and assist man (1.7 apg) over his
career.
And his durability can’t be questioned. Green has never played fewer than 69
games in any season.
Green is no stranger to postseason play – doing playoff tours with the Thunder,
Celtics, Grizzlies and Clippers. In Boston’s six-game First Round loss to J.R.
Smith’s Knicks back in 2012-13, Green averaged 20.6 points per.
Overall, he’s played in 38 postseason contests, starting 15.
The Cavaliers haven’t made major moves so far this summer. But for a team that
made its third straight trip to the Finals, they don’t really have to at this
point.
So, while other teams make dramatic moves and their newly-minted free agents win
the press conference, the Wine & Gold will be concentrating on making the moves
to win the actual Conference.
Again.
Player: Jeff Green
Media Content: http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/features/green-sign-170712
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