Gerald Green



Gerald Green, Jr. (born January 26, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Boston Celtics with the 18th pick of the first round in the 2005 NBA Draft. He has performed well in many slam dunk competitions, having won the 2005 McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Contest and the 2007 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, while finishing as the runner-up in the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.[1 ] {| class="toc" id="toc"

Contents
[hide] *1 High school career
 * 2 Professional career
 * 2.1 Draft
 * 2.2 Boston Celtics (2005-2007)
 * 2.2.1 2005-2006
 * 2.2.2 2006-2007
 * 2.3 Minnesota Timberwolves (2007-2008)
 * 2.4 Houston Rockets (2008)
 * 2.5 Dallas Mavericks (2008-2009)
 * 2.6 Russia (2009-2011)
 * 2.7 China (2011)
 * 2.8 Los Angeles D-Fenders (2011-2012)
 * 2.9 New Jersey Nets
 * 2.10 Career transactions
 * 2.11 Awards
 * 3 Notes
 * 4 External links
 * }

[edit] High school career
Green did not play high school basketball until his sophomore year, when he played junior varsity for J. Frank Dobie High School. In his junior year he made the varsity team, but his play was cut short because of academic issues.[citation needed]

He transferred[citation needed] to a charter school, Gulf Shores Academy in Houston,[2 ] where he repeated his junior year.[citation needed] In his senior year at Gulf Shores, he averaged 33 points, 12 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 blocked shots per game. He was named an All-American and was the high scorer in the 2005 McDonald's All-American game scoring 24 points.,[3 ] which features two teams composed of the best high school basketball players in the US. Green also won the McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Contest that year, defeating future Duke player Josh McRoberts.

[edit] Draft
Green originally committed to attending Oklahoma State University, but later decided to enter the NBA Draft upon graduation. He hired an agent, thereby making himself ineligible to participate in NCAA athletics. Green was expected by many analysts to be one of the top few players chosen but he fell to the Celtics, who selected him with the 18th pick in the draft. His fall is attributed to his decision to give individual work outs only for the teams with the top six picks prior to the draft.[citation needed]

Green drew comparisons to former Houston Rockets teammate and star Tracy McGrady in the period leading up to the 2005 NBA Draft.[1 ]

Green was one of the last players to enter the NBA directly from high school, as the collective bargaining agreement between NBA owners and the NBA Players' Association now mandates that American players who enter the NBA Draft must be at least one year removed from the graduation of their high school class and reach age 19 no later than December 31 of the calendar year of the draft.[citation needed]

[edit] 2005-2006
During the pre-season, Green averaged 8 points and 1.3 rebounds per game for the Celtics in the 2005 Las Vegas Summer League.[4 ]

After seeing limited playing time during the first part of the season, Green was placed on the Fayetteville Patriots of the NBA D-League by the Celtics in January 2006. He was recalled and activated to an NBA roster position on February 3. He was reassigned to the NBDL, to the Florida Flame, on February 16. He was recalled and activated again on February 21, and saw his first significant NBA game action on the following night, scoring 13 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in 23 minutes.

He appeared in 32 games and averaged 11.8 minutes, 5.2 points, and 1.2 rebounds during these contests. Gerald Green left marks on the league with his highlight plays including a shot clock beating half court three against Indiana and two SportsCenter top play dunks in the closing seconds in two games against Toronto.

[edit] 2006-2007
Over the off-season, Green aimed at improving all aspects of his game in order to gain playing time. He had shown flashes of his capability during the end of the 2005-06 season, but started off the 2006-07 season slowly, earning a somewhat limited role and playing time behind captain Paul Pierce, and swingman Wally Szczerbiak. With injuries to Szczerbiak and Pierce, his playing time increased, but he was unable to nail down a starting role. Green started his first ever game early December against the Philadelphia 76ers, but then lost his job to a returning Szczerbiak. Green finished the 2006-07 season averaging 10.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game.

On February 17, 2007, Green won the 2007 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, beating out Nate Robinson, Tyrus Thomas, and Dwight Howard.

The season was going very well for Green. On March 16, 2007, he scored a career-high 25 points in a Celtics' loss to the Dallas Mavericks,[5 ] [6 ] and on April 10, 2007, Green topped that with 33 points (12-22 FG, 4-5 3FG) at Atlanta.[5 ]

On July 31, 2007 it was made official that Green was to be traded along with Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair, and draft picks, to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Garnett.[7 ]

[edit] Minnesota Timberwolves (2007-2008)
At Minnesota, Green found himself stuck on the bench behind a number of players at his same position. In early January 2008, Green's agent asked the Timberwolves to trade his client.[8 ]

At the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Green opened the competition with a dunk he called "The Birthday Cake" in which he blew out a birthday candle on a cupcake set on the back of the rim while dunking. He followed that up with an alley-oop two-handed windmill. His first dunk of the second round was an alley-oop from behind the basket which he put between his legs before dunking. His final dunk of the night was a between-the-legs one-handed slam that he performed after taking off his shoes. He ended up finishing second to Dwight Howard, after Howard received seventy-eight percent of the votes cast by fans through text message.[9 ] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-9">[10 ]

[edit] Houston Rockets (2008)
On February 21, 2008, Green was traded to his hometown team Houston Rockets for Kirk Snyder, a second round 2010 draft pick, and cash considerations. He was subsequently released by the Rockets on March 8<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-nba.com_10-0">[11 ] and became an unrestricted free agent in July.

[edit] Dallas Mavericks (2008-2009)
On July 1, 2008, Gerald Green signed with the Dallas Mavericks. His agent Colin Bryant told Fox 26 Sports, "We have a verbal agreement with Dallas on a one year contract, We talked to a number of teams and there is more money out there, but this is the best situation for Gerald at this point in his career."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11">[12 ]

Green was not supposed to go to the summer league but chose to go to learn the plays and get a feeling of the Mavs organization early and not let his chance slip away. In the Vegas Summer League he averaged an underwhelming 13.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg on 38% shooting from the field. On a bright note, he was 43% from beyond the arc. Following the Vegas Summer League, the Mavs and Gerald participated in the Rocky Mountain Revue, a summer league held in Salt Lake City, Utah. There in just 25.8 mpg Green averaged 17.7 ppg to go with 2.7 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1 spg, .5 bpg, and a respectable 2.2 topg. This time around, Gerald shot a much more impressive 45%, including going 12 for 26 from behind the three point line (46%), and 28-31 from the free throw line (90%). His overall performance was enough to earn him All-Revue Team honors.

[edit] Russia (2009-2011)
Green signed with PBC Lokomotiv-Kuban of Russia on December 2009.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-realgm_12-0">[13 ] He was waived by the Lokomotiv Kuban on June 2010. He then was named to the Los Angeles Lakers roster for the 2010 NBA Summer League.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13">[14 ] After the Summer League, Green signed with BC Krasnye Krylya, also a Russian team.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-sportando_14-0">[15 ]

[edit] China (2011)
In October 2011 he moved to China, signing a one-year contract with the Foshan Dralions.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-foshan1_15-0">[16 ] On December 2, 2011, Green was released by Foshan.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-foshan2_16-0">[17 ]

[edit] Los Angeles D-Fenders (2011-2012)
On December 28, 2011, Green signed with the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA Development League.

[edit] New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets signed Green to a 10-day contract on February 27, 2012. He was signed to a second 10-day contract on March 8, 2012. On March 18, 2012, he was signed for the rest of the season.

[edit] Career transactions

 * June 28, 2005: Drafted 18th overall by Boston Celtics in 2005 NBA Draft.
 * Assigned to D-League's Fayetteville Patriots on January 6, 2006 until February 3, 2006.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-dleague_17-0">[18 ]
 * Assigned to D-League's Florida Flame on February 16, 2006 until February 21, 2006.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-dleague_17-1">[18 ]
 * July 31, 2007: Acquired by the Minnesota Timberwolves along with Al Jefferson, Theo Ratliff, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair and two future first-round draft picks in exchange for Kevin Garnett.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18">[19 ]
 * February 21, 2008: Acquired by the Houston Rockets in exchange for Kirk Snyder, a 2010 second-round draft pick and cash considerations.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19">[20 ]
 * March 8, 2008: Waived by the Rockets
 * July 3, 2008: Signed by the Dallas Mavericks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20">[21 ]
 * July 1, 2009: Became a free agent.
 * December 2009: Signed with PBC Lokomotiv-Kuban of Russia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-realgm_12-1">[13 ]
 * August 2010: Signed with BC Krasnye Krylia of Russia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-sportando_14-1">[15 ]
 * October 2011: Signed with the Foshan Dralions of China.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-foshan1_15-1">[16 ]
 * December 2011: Contract terminated by Foshan Dralions.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-foshan2_16-1">[17 ]
 * December 13, 2011: Signed with the Los Angeles Lakers.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21">[22 ]
 * December 22, 2011: Waived by the Lakers.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">[23 ]
 * December 28, 2011: Acquired by the Los Angeles D-Fenders.
 * February 27, 2012: Signed a 10-day contract with the New Jersey Nets.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23">[24 ]
 * March 8, 2012: Signed a second 10-day contract with the New Jersey Nets.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24">[25 ]
 * March 18, 2012: Signed with New Jersey Nets for the remainder of the season.

[edit] Awards

 * 2005 McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Contest winner
 * 2007 NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner
 * 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest runner-up
 * 2008 Rocky Mountain Revue All-Revue Team

[edit] Notes

 * 1) ^ a b Robinson, Jon (2005-09-29). "Gerald Green: Color of Money". IGN. http://sports.ign.com/articles/654/654675p1.html. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
 * 2) ^ Radcliffe, Jennifer. "Fresh start for struggling school." Houston Chronicle. April 9, 2009. Retrieved on April 11, 2009.
 * 3) ^ NBADraft.net | 2005 McDonald's All-American Game Recap
 * 4) ^ Boston Celtics summer league statistics
 * 5) ^ a b Hawks pull out victory in battle of shorthanded teams
 * 6) ^ Nowitzki, Howard help Mavs rebound from back-to-back losses
 * 7) ^ Garnett deal finalized - BostonHerald.com
 * 8) ^ Green wants a trade
 * 9) ^ Howard ends Green’s reign - BostonHerald.com
 * 10) ^ http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba/nbacom/tnt/allstar/nba_dunk_best_021708.asx
 * 11) ^ Rockets Sign Mike Harris to 10-Day Contract
 * 12) ^ MyFox Houston | Gerald Green to Join Dallas
 * 13) ^ a b Gerald Green Signs With Russian Team. Retrieved on December 16, 2009.
 * 14) ^ NBA Player Page
 * 15) ^ a b Krasnye Krylia tabs Gerald Green
 * 16) ^ a b Gerald Green signed in China with Foshan
 * 17) ^ a b Gerald Green sacked by Chinese club
 * 18) ^ a b NBA Development League: 2005-2006 D-League Transactions
 * 19) ^ Celtics Acquire 10-Time All-Star Kevin Garnett
 * 20) ^ Wolves Trade Green to Rockets
 * 21) ^ Mavs go Green: High-flying free agent signs
 * 22) ^ Lakers Sign Gerald Green and Malcolm Thomas
 * 23) ^ Lakers Waive Five Players
 * 24) ^ NETS Sign Gerald Green to 10-Day Contract
 * 25) ^ Forward Gerald Green signs second 10-day contract with New Jersey Nets