Mavs' Josh Green on Contract Extension Talks: 'I Want to Win in Dallas'
DALLAS — Josh Green, who is set to play out the final year of his rookie contract, is eligible to sign an extension with the Dallas Mavericks until Oct. 23. After he produced a career-best season averaging 9.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 60 games, both sides have expressed an interest in getting a deal done, but an agreement has yet to be reached.
"I'm just letting my agents deal with that," Green said regarding contract talks. "I have a training camp. We have a lot of stuff we need to do as a team this year. I leave that to my agents."
Regardless of the outcome of extension talks, Green has continued to express his desire to remain long-term with the Mavs organization. Without a deal, he would become a restricted free agent next summer. His focus remains on impacting the court while separating business from basketball.
"I know I want to be here," Green said regarding his Mavs future. "I'm going to work as if I'm going to be here for a long time. I want to be able to win in Dallas. I'm going to be in Dallas. Whatever their decision, it is their decision. I have the same goal every single day, and that's just to be the best teammate or the best player I can be for the team."
Entering his fourth NBA season, there is a strong outlook for Green to continue to expand his role with the Mavs. The recent season-by-season improvement as a perimeter shooter that Green has displayed while rapidly taking more attempts has encouraged the organization. He shot 16.0 percent on 25 attempts as a rookie, then responded by converting at a 35.9 percent clip on 78 attempts during his sophomore campaign. Last season, he set another career-high in volume with 169 attempts and shot 40.2 percent. Now, the team wants to see him continue to take on more as a half-court initiator, something he did more at times last season, even involving Luka Doncic as a screener in pick-and-roll.
"Josh is in a great seat," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said of Green. "He's had a great summer with his national team. Looking at being able to pick up where he left off by shooting the ball at a high clip, and then also being able to lean on him to run the offense and get us into certain plays."
During Green's offseason workouts, he emphasized continuing to add upper body strength and working to establish consistency throughout his game. He worked on breaking down a defender in tight windows as a shot creator and focused on accuracy and shooting discipline instead of hoisting up a large volume of reps.
"I think a big focus of mine was making sure I was in the weight room a lot. Continuing to try to build a bigger upper body and staying consistent throughout the whole game, playing more one-on-one in tight situations — three seconds to get a shot off. I focused on being consistent with my 3-point shooting, making multiple in a row before I could move on to the next spot instead of just making the reps."
After the Mavs finished last season with a 38-44 record, Green quickly went to work before beginning training camp with the Australian national team to prepare with the group for the FIBA World Cup. He left the offseason with the sense that he got a lot of value out of it ahead of an important season.
"I think the main thing was making sure I was deliberate with everything I did," Green explained. "I knew that I had to work up this offseason. As soon as we didn't make the playoffs, I went straight to work there for two and a half months before being able to head to Australia for camp. It was a fun summer. I felt like I got a lot out of it."
Green's impact doing the little things like making hustle plays for loose balls to create extra possessions is a continued layer of value the Mavs will rely on him to provide. However, the team wants to see him take on the role of being their defensive stopper by taking on the toughest perimeter assignment on a nightly basis. Alongside superstars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, someone will need to handle such responsibilities to alleviate pressure off them. The team is confident that Green is ready to handle it.
"Josh's energy pursuing 50-50 balls and getting us extra possessions is something we're going to need from him," Kidd said. "Defensively, being able to guard the other perimeter offensive threat is something we will ask him to do. I think he's up for that challenge."
Green told DallasBasketball.com during the World Cup that he desires to provide a "bigger defensive presence" for the Mavs this season. With the team making adjustments to the scheme, he remains focused on understanding all of the nuances within the team's desired approach and helping execute them by taking on more of a vocal leadership role.
"We'll have a great defensive scheme with Alex Jensen and Jared Dudley; I have to make sure that I'm paying attention to every little detail and trying to be a vocal leader," Green said. "I've kind of been the quiet guy on the team, but I have to get that to go away to take that next step, not only for me but also as a team."
The list of responsibilities and areas the Mavs plan to rely on Green to fulfill is only growing. The team doesn't plan to stop adding to it anytime soon as long as Green continues to stay ready to shoulder more responsibility.
"The growth since we've been here for Josh has been great," Kidd said. "He's done the work, and we'll keep giving him more until he tells us he's had enough."
Green appreciates the confidence the coaching staff has in his abilities and is ready to shoulder the expanded defensive role, similar to the one he recently filled with the Australian national team at the World Cup as the team's starting wing and top defensive stopper. For a player who has taken on greater responsibility annually, he's excited for what's ahead, entering his fourth season with the Mavs.
"The coaches have confidence in me as a player, and I have confidence in myself as a defensive player," Green said. "I'm ready to take on whatever role it is for the team, and I'm excited."
While it's just the beginning of the process, In terms of the team at large, Green is ecstatic with the group of players the front office has put together and appreciates how the coaching staff has established structure. With how the team has worked in training camp thus far, he feels a collective readiness to have a bounce-back year.
"The front office did an amazing job, and the coaching staff made a structure in this team. I think we have a great team," Green said. "The first two days of training camp have been a lot of fun. It's always good to go up and down against competitive guys. Everyone has the same goal here, even the guys that weren't here last season. They feel what we went through last year."
The first opportunity Green will have to compete against live competition with the new roster is on Oct. 5 when the Mavs face the Minnesota Timberwolves in Abu Dhabi.
